Friction
by doubleox515
Summary: In a world of violence, criminal gatherings and hostile corruption, it is natural for there to be a want of change. But those who can help, the superhumans, are demeaned by "normal people". All it takes is one moment of friction to set off an explosion, one so large that it will send the Nordics into a whirlwind of chaos, into a battle of morals, good and evil. HETALIA SUPERHERO AU
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Himaruya Hidekazu. The plot of this AU belongs to myself and theartisserie.**

 **Warning: This story will involve lots of strong language, violence, mature themes and other strong references. I will leave separate warnings for especially triggering events at the beginning of a particular chapter.**

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Sitting on the edge of the wharf, with his legs dangling over, a young man contemplated the meaning of his life. He wondered what he had done in his past one—if there was such a thing—to deserve this: ostracised, demeaned and cornered where he couldn't escape, where he had nowhere to run.

He never asked to be powerful. He never wished to have abilities beyond a normal human's physical capabilities. He just wanted a _life_ , one where he could do whatever he wanted, be with whomever he wanted to be with and be whatever he wanted to be. But fate was clearly against him in this regard and he let out a heavy sigh.

Leaning forward to see the water's lapping tongue, he saw his face rippling on its surface. He wasn't anything extraordinary with his appearance. He just looked like a normal person. Scowling at his own reflection, disgusted at what he saw, he laid back onto the pier with a huff.

His eyes took in the sky above him. It was nearing the end of the day, with the darkness of cobalt blue mixing in with the pink and gold hues of an approaching sunset. A dazzling halo of light surrounded the silver lining of the large clouds. It was as if God was shining a sacred torch from behind his fluffy barrier.

A short laugh passed his lips. God… There was no such thing. Not in this world. Even if he was real, how could he create such horrid creatures that lived in the world as outcasts?

Faint sirens and the whirring of a helicopter suddenly pierced the atmosphere. _Probably off to catch another sorry super,_ he thought woefully, watching the dark spot amongst the gold as it headed off towards the city. _I feel for them… I hope they make it out alive._

Wrinkling his nose in distaste, he placed his palm over his heart, feeling its beat. Maybe he did have a purpose for being on this earth… but what? What could it possibly be? What could he possibly be while the government and the general public looked down on his kind as some kind of dirty disease? Raising his arms, he made a rectangle with his pointer fingers and thumbs. Looking through them, he saw a single bird flying away from the city. He wondered what it was like to fly, to be free from the degraded world, where no prejudices and presumptions existed, where his people could live freely amongst the rest…

'Bloody government… bloody people… making my life miserable,' he muttered, letting his arms fall with a harsh slap against the wood. 'Why can't you just fuck off?'

'Is that a sour attitude I smell?'

At the voice, he leapt quickly to his feet, hands out in fists. He was ready to fight to anyone if he had to. But all he saw when he realised what he was staring at was an older man, attired in a sleek, black suit. A Cheshire grin graced his mouth, and his long fingers held a smouldering cigarette. He gazed at the teen with an interest, a spark of intrigue twinkling in his eyes.

'Who are you?' the younger male asked warily, unnerved at the sudden appearance of this stranger. He licked his lips and stood a little taller. 'Have you… have you come to take me away?'

The stranger raised an eyebrow at his question. Then he laughed loudly and heaved in one more breath of his cigarette before he extinguished it under his shoe. Blowing out a heap of smoke, the cunning grin returned and he held out an inviting arm towards his junior.

'Come. I think we need to have a nice, _long_ chat.'

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 **A/N: AHHHH IT'S FINALLY HERE OMGGGGGG! Oh man, I have waited for this day! I'M SO EXCITED!  
Sorry it's taken so long to post this guys . Now, for those of you who don't follow me on Tumblr and have absolutely no idea what this is... Well, this is my latest story, collaborated with the wonderful theartisserie! It is a Hetalia Superhero AU heavily based around concepts in both X-Men and Daredevil (because we are not only Hetalia trash but Marvel trash too). I 100% recommend (meaning this is an order) for all of you to go and check out theartisserie on Tumblr and check out the AMAZING ARTWORK FOR THIS AU I AM SCREAMING.  
** **Now, I'm going to try (emphasis on try) to update this weekly c: I've got the first few chapters ready to go (just need to go over them again haha...), so expect regular updates! So, without further ado, I hope you guys enjoyed the prologue! Expect Chapter 1 next week!  
** **Reviews are much appreciated!~**


	2. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Himaruya Hidekazu. The plot of this AU belongs to myself and theartisserie.**

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 _"_ _What it takes for a world of chaos to be redeemed is one, bright mind that is willing to change it…"_

 **o**

Matthias Køhler slammed his forehead on his table with a loud bang, only to immediately straighten his back with his eyes wide open. He took in a few annoyed looks from his classmates and he mouthed a quiet, 'Sorry' in response. His lecturer didn't seem to notice as he continued to ramble on about something to do with working in teams and mechanics.

Doing an engineering degree was one of the most challenging things Matthias had ever done in his life. But to say he didn't love it would be a lie. He just would have preferred it if he had gotten the right amount of sleep the night before.

His friend sent him a concerned look. 'Another late night?'

Matthias smiled and then rubbed his eyes. 'Yeah. You could say that.'

'Seriously Matthias, you need sleep!' his friend whispered harshly, careful not to be too loud. 'This isn't good for you.'

'I'm fine, Ludwig,' Matthias told him. He suppressed a yawn. 'I'm going to bed earlier tonight anyway.'

Ludwig snorted. ' _Ja_ , that's what you said yesterday too.' He shook his head. 'I honestly wonder what it is you do every night in order to stay up so late, because I know it's not because of studying.'

Matthias opened his mouth to argue only to shut it again when he realised that he didn't have a proper reason to deny his statement. 'Nothing important,' he muttered, blinking wearily.

He saw Ludwig narrow his eyes at him. He waited a moment before saying very quietly and with a small blush on his face, 'You aren't… fucking around, are you?'

Matthias, taken back at the question, spluttered, 'What? What does that even—' When it hit him, his eyes went round and his face turned bright red. 'Dude, what the fuck? Do I look like someone who does that kind of thing?'

'I don't know!' Ludwig mouthed, clearly embarrassed for asking. 'You don't exactly hold back when it comes to your preference…'

'Oi, just because I've had a few partners over the years doesn't mean I just… _sleep_ around whenever I feel like it,' he grumbled, very much affronted and lips pursed in a pout.

'I didn't think so, but you're being very secretive as to what you were up to last night,' Ludwig retorted and Matthias repressed a scream.

'Why do you want to know so badly?'

'Because I'm your friend and I worry about you!'

Matthias sighed and ran his hands through his hair, wincing when he tugged against a particularly knotty part. He didn't have time to sort it out this morning before the lecture started, unlike Ludwig with his perfectly slicked back, blond hair. What a start to the day.

Looking at Ludwig, Matthias smiled softly. He had gotten to know Ludwig quite well over the past year, having met as first years, and this certainly wasn't the first time he had chastised Matthias over the same issue. Matthias found it rather amusing to see someone who was big and bulky, with a gruff voice and an intimidating façade most times become a flushed, overprotective mess over a little thing as someone not getting enough sleep. Matthias was grateful for his concern, even more so for his friendship. Ludwig Beilschmidt was definitely an interesting character, one Matthias was sure he was going to remain friends with for a lifetime… Even with his annoying habit of being _extremely_ nosy and over-the-top. Not that he did it intentionally, Matthias knew that. It was just in that crazy German's nature.

'I appreciate it, Lu,' he said, rubbing his forehead, 'but seriously, I'm fine.'

Before Ludwig could say anything more, they saw the rest of their class begin to pack their things and leave the lecture hall. Matthias glanced down at his empty notebook and groaned inwardly at the fact that he had a lot of catching up to do. Ludwig looked at him, sighed for the millionth time that morning, then said, 'I'll give you the notes that I managed to take down on one condition: you start taking care of yourself… This, what you are doing now, is not good for your health.'

Matthias grinned at his friend. 'I'll do my best, and thank you so much, you're a pal.'

Ludwig grumbled as he looked at his own notes. 'There's no way you'd be able to read these… and I didn't get the last few minutes' worth down… _Verdammt._ '

'Well, it's better than getting nothing down,' Matthias muttered, frowning. 'Why did I even bother coming today?'

'Hey guys!'

Both of them lifting their heads towards the owner of the voice, Matthias' and Ludwig's solemn faces brightened when they saw their fellow engineer approaching them. She was one of the few women who did the course, if not the smartest out of all of them, men included, who did it. She was shorter and slighter than both of them, but was similar in the regard that she was blonde. Her green eyes sparkled as they settled on the two men.

'I heard someone had notes missing?' she continued, her lips up in a challenging smile.

'Hey Anne,' Ludwig greeted, his face going pink when her words sunk into his mind. 'And uh, yeah, we were discussing things—'

'Yeah, I heard you guys talking,' Anne said, eyeing them furtively. 'I heard someone had a rough night.'

When Matthias scowled heavily, she let out a laugh, her shoulders shaking. She took out her notebook from her bag and waved it in front of them. 'I have all the notes from today and I am willing to share them with you two because you are my good engineering buddies. Shall we meet up tomorrow to sort them out?'

'Anne… I love you,' Matthias whispered, causing her to shake her head at him, albeit with a grin. 'But yeah, we can meet up!'

'Does four at that café down the road sound good to you guys?' she suggested, eyebrow raised.

Ludwig and Matthias agreed, and proceeded to thank Anne repeatedly for her help. Packing their things, the three left the lecture hall and wandered into the corridor. After saying goodbye to Anne and Ludwig, and promising he'd go to bed earlier that night, Matthias weaved through the crowded halls of the building in the direction of the dormitories. He planned to take a nice, long nap. Ludwig was right about one thing: he definitely needed more sleep.

Thankful for not having any other major commitments that day, Matthias climbed up the many stairs of the dormitory building. He was not exactly willing to squish into the overflowing elevator. When he reached the second floor, he heard a series of shouts and banging of doors, and angry voices going down the hallway. Peeking around the corner, he held back a laugh when he saw a teenage boy, his eyebrows furrowed deeply, standing in front of a closed door. The angry voices came from the other residents on the same floor, and the teenager scowled heavily at them with a red face.

'What do you expect from me?' he yelled. 'I am locked out of my own dorm and my stupid roommate isn't letting me in!'

'Well fucking try to keep the noise down!' one resident hollered, clearly not impressed. The teenager rolled his eyes and knocked on the door hard.

'You right there, Emmy?' Matthias asked the boy, trying not to smile as he approached him.

Emmy, or rather Emil, looked at Matthias with an irritated expression on his face. 'Does it look like I'm alright? My roommate is deaf as fuck and I've got the entire floor biting my head off!—and don't call me 'Emmy', idiot!'

Smirking, Matthias ruffled Emil's pale blond hair, who protested loudly at the action. Emil Steilsson was an eighteen year old in his first year of university. Matthias had known him for two years and he was surprised to see how much he had grown up in that time. He saw Emil as a little brother, though the younger male would probably disagree and call him an idiot if he ever said it out loud.

'Have you tried his mobile?' Matthias asked him, pointing to Emil's jeans' pocket.

'I tried calling him, texting him, even banging on this bloody door and nothing!' Emil cried, and then groaned into his hands. 'What am I going to do?'

'You can always come upstairs for a bit, until he gets back,' Matthias offered. 'We'd be happy to let you stay for a bit.'

'Nah… I'll be okay…' Emil muttered, looking at his shoes. 'Don't want to be a bother.'

'You're sure?' Matthias asked him, genuinely worried. 'You wouldn't be a bother—you're a good boy,' he added, squeezing one of his cheeks.

After mumbling out a curse, Emil nodded. 'Lukas would never let me hear the end of it.'

Matthias cracked a grin. Lukas was Emil's step-brother. The teenager couldn't quite accept the fact that they were officially so, given that his father and Lukas' mother had gotten married a year ago. With that authorised notion, Lukas was looking for every opportunity to use his "big brother responsibilities" as he called it, much to Emil's displeasure.

He slapped a hand on Emil's shoulder. 'It's open if you change your mind. You can do your Physics stuff there in peace.'

'Thanks Matt…' He sent Matthias a small smile as he slid down his door and pulled out his phone. 'I'll keep myself entertained for the time being…'

Matthias shook his head at the strangeness of Emil's attitude, but left him to his own devices with a brief wave as he made his way back to the staircases. If there was one thing he hated, it was climbing stairs. Much to his relief, he made it to the fourth floor in no time, digging around in his pockets for his keys as he walked up to his and Lukas' dormitory. Opening the dormitory door, Matthias almost screamed out loud when he came face-to-face with a pair of navy eyes. His eyes widened and his heart leapt at his ribcage at the close proximity. He yelped out, 'Jesus Christ Lukas!' as a response.

Lukas gaped at him in apparent alarm, but his expression softened when he bent down to tie his shoelaces. 'Sorry… but I can't talk right now, I'm running late.'

'Again? Your professor's not going to be happy with you…'

'I know that!' Lukas grumbled, racing back into their living room and stuffing his books into his bag. 'I slept in… I was having such a nice dream too…'

Glancing at the clock, Matthias laughed. 'Yeah, that's one hell of a sleep in, Luke—it's past one!'

'Shut up, you moron,' was the reply Matthias got and he couldn't help but let out another laugh.

'If you have time, can you do the shopping? We're running out of food,' said Lukas, as he checked his appearance in the bathroom mirror before coming out. 'I've made a list—it's on the table.'

'Yeah sure.' Just as Lukas made his way to go out, Matthias looked down and saw that Lukas' set of keys were still in the bowl by the door. 'Honey, you forgot your keys!' Matthias sang, giggling at the glare that Lukas sent his way.

'Don't even,' Lukas warned, grabbing the keys that dangled from Matthias' fingers. 'Thank you… I'll see you later.' With that, Lukas bolted out of the door and ran down the corridor, trying in vain to get one arm into his jacket sleeve as he went down the first set of stairs.

Shutting the door slightly, Matthias chuckled at his roommate's actions. _Ah… nothing's changed, has it?_ Matthias had known Lukas Bondevik for almost fifteen years, having met when they were little five year olds in kindergarten. Their friendship had followed them into university and Matthias grinned at Lukas' habit of sleeping in, a trait that had developed when they had hit the later years of high school.

Walking over to the coffee table, Matthias picked up the small list Lukas had made, grabbed his wallet and car keys, and made his way out of the room. _Might as well get it over and done with,_ he thought. _Then I can sleep…_

As he made his way through the dormitory building again, checking in on Emil as he passed the second floor, only to find him in the same spot as he left him in, Matthias read over the list. He shook his head at the copious amount of coffee Lukas wanted him to get. _He has a serious addiction…_

A cold blast of air hit him when he got out of the building. It was rather chilly that day, despite the sun shining down and there being hardly any cloud cover. Matthias zipped up his jacket and went towards the car park. As he walked past a couple of to-be interns, he heard them discussing something rather seriously with grave expressions on their faces.

'Yeah, I heard they're getting out of control…'

'I heard that as well… I also heard on the news that they're causing even more havoc than usual.'

'We should just get rid of them! Who needs bloody _supers_ anyway? It's not like they're any use to the population, are they?'

Matthias felt his blood begin to boil, and he was in two minds whether or not to turn around and punch the stupid guy in the face. _We're the reason people like you are still alive, you shithead!_ But Matthias took in deep breath, calmed down slightly, and kept walking, grinning to himself as he watched a small ember form in the palm of his hand. _If they knew the details… they'd take back their words…_

In the world, in every country upon the globe, there were a group of humans called superhumans, or as the general public nicknamed them, "supers". They lived alongside normal humans, hiding amongst the populations in constant in fear of being discovered. Their kind were not liked by the others. They were seen as a people to be afraid of, to look down on because of their "barbaric" ways and to consider them as a threat to international security. No one trusted a super, and if a super was found out, government officials were first on the scene to whisk them away. Never were they to be seen again.

When Matthias had discovered as a younger teen that he was one of these supers, he had begun to have nightmares of being taken away from everyone he loved, into a cold, dark room, full of doctors in white lab coats and needles and chains hanging from the ceiling…

Matthias shook his head, ridding himself of the thoughts. He wouldn't become like them… He wouldn't… Which is why he had to show the government the truth about his kind and what they as supers were truly capable of doing.

The city Matthias resided in was anything but perfect. Many areas were deemed out of bounds for many people, given the disposition of the lifestyle there. Drugs, violence, murder in every third or fourth home and hookers on street corners: the city was far from a paradise. There were more criminals roaming the streets than desired, not to mention that the police force was hopelessly outnumbered, which was why Matthias was determined to help them and clean the dirty label the general public put on supers.

Whenever he passed the police station, Matthias made sure to see who was on the wanted list and to do some brief research before pursuing them. He did it on the sly, usually on most nights when Lukas had long gone to bed, and it often resulted in Matthias being extremely sore and tried the next day. But it never failed to make him feel accomplished that he had done something for the better of the city.

Due to the nature of his nightly activities, he tried to avoid telling Ludwig what he was really up to whenever he asked. He'd never believe him in the first place, and if he did end up believing, Matthias wouldn't be surprised if he was handed over to the authorities. To be conspiring with supers was seen as a major crime and would result in dire consequences for both parties.

Having reached his car, Matthias hopped into it and put his keys into the lock, turning it once. Turning on the radio, he shifted through the channels, looking for a decent music station. He paused when he heard a news reporter announcing breaking news.

 _'_ _It is most confusing as to how this event occurred, but police tell us that they located the wanted drug and sex trafficker Joshua Michaels in the early hours of this morning at Pop's Warehouse. He appeared to have been in a struggle with… well, something or rather, for he was discovered with a number of burns on his arms and face. Police also discovered his accomplice Frederick Smith in a similar circumstance, although he was found hanging by his feet from the roof of a nearby building. Michaels and Smith are in a stable condition at St Vincent's hospital, where they will be taken into custody and trialled for their crimes later on in the week after their recoveries…'_

Matthias smiled wickedly. 'You're welcome,' he whispered. 'Have fun with them—I sure did.'

With that, he started the car properly and drove towards the supermarket.

 **.**

When Matthias came back, arms laden with shopping bags, he bumped into Lukas in the corridor. Taking a few bags from him, Lukas went to open their dormitory door, allowing Matthias to pass through once he had done so.

'Did you get my coffee?' he asked him, setting the bags he had on the kitchen bench.

'Yeah, about that Lukas…' Matthias took out the crumpled list from his pocket. ' _Six jars?_ We need to talk about this… you have a condition and it needs to stop.' He sighed. 'But because I love you, I got all six.'

Lukas grinned, slapping Matthias' arm as he went to close their dormitory door. 'You're the best.'

'I know I am! But seriously, we need to have a talk, Lukas…'

Lukas rolled his eyes lightly as he began to take groceries out of the bags they had set upon the benches. 'Tino and Berwald are coming by later on—we're going out to the library. Do you want to join us?' he asked Matthias, taking out a loaf of bread from one of the bags.

The idea did appeal to Matthias. But when he let out a giant yawn against his will, he said, 'Not today… I should get some sleep. Unlike you, I didn't get as much as I wanted to last night.'

Lukas tilted his head to the side in confusion. 'What do you mean? You went to bed before me.'

Matthias shrugged. 'Couldn't sleep…' When he saw Lukas looking at him in concern, he smiled softly and waved a hand. 'It's nothing to worry about, Luke. I just need to stop playing around on my phone…'

As Lukas shook his head in disapproval, Matthias let out a quiet sigh. It was to some extent true: not only was he busy with catching criminals by giving them burns and hanging them off buildings, but in all truthfulness, Matthias had not been sleeping well. His slumbers had been plagued with vivid nightmares for the past few weeks, though where they had come from, he had no idea. All he knew was that he didn't want to see another dead friend or face a crackling thundercloud that zapped him with a cackling laugh. He had spent most of his nights reading strange posts or watching videos to take his mind off of things or until he eventually fell asleep from sheer exhaustion.

They spent the next few minutes silently unpacking the shopping, Lukas occasionally throwing Matthias worried glances. Matthias paid them no mind, but appreciated the gestures nonetheless. That was the beauty of Lukas' personality: though he was a soft-spoken guy that hardly expressed his emotions around others, whenever he was around Matthias, he let himself go a little bit. Matthias saw more of his smiles when they were alone together than when they were out with others, and his voice was lighter then as well, the tone slightly less monotone than usual.

When the last bag had been unpacked, there was a knock on their door. When Matthias went to answer it, he smiled hugely at the sight of Tino and Berwald.

Along with Lukas, Emil and Matthias himself, Tino Väinämöinen and Berwald Oxenstierna were a part of their little amalgamated group. They were second years like Lukas and Matthias, but were only vaguely aware of each other. Matthias had known Berwald since their first day of university when he had ploughed straight into him in the dormitory corridor on the first floor, successful in knocking them both over and sending all their books and papers flying. Lukas had met Tino in one of the many clubs that the university had to offer and had become good friends through that. Soon, they had become acquainted with Emil and had created their little group.

'Hey Matthias!' Tino greeted, grinning; Berwald sent Matthias a nod and a tiny quirk of the lips. 'Lukas home?'

'Right here!' Lukas came rushing out of the kitchen in a similar fashion as he had done earlier that afternoon. His voice had lowered and there was sameness in the way he spoke. 'We good to go?'

'Ready when you are,' Berwald rumbled. He peered at Matthias through his glasses. 'You coming with us?'

'No, he needs to rest,' Lukas replied for him, voice laced with mild worry. 'He had little sleep last night.'

Tino puffed his cheeks out in disappointment. 'Aw. Naughty Matthias, you need to sleep!'

'Sorry… But I'll definitely join you guys next time!' Matthias crowed before supressing a yawn.

Lukas narrowed his eyes at him. 'Go to bed, moron. I'll see you when I get back, okay? And call me if you need anything—'

'Will do,' Matthias told him, smiling. 'Now go—the library closes at seven, doesn't it?'

'He's right… we better get a move on,' Tino muttered, looking at his watch. 'See you later, Matthias!'

'See you soon!' Matthias said, waving at their retreating backs.

He waited until they were at the stairs before shutting the door. He let out a sigh. He really was tired… Perhaps it was time for him to take Ludwig's and Lukas' advice and have some rest, but he was rather afraid of having the same nightmares again. But his body was screaming at him to lie down and to let sleep overtake him. With one final yawn, Matthias went into his room and, for the first time in days, he laid his head on his pillow and fell into a peaceful sleep in seconds. He'd catch up on everything else tomorrow…

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 ** _To be continued..._**

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 **A/N: Yay Chapter 1 is finally up, and our loveable Nordic 5 are now in the story! Now, I'm going to be keeping these A/Ns to a minimum so I don't bomabard you all with them. So I would like to take the moment now to thank everyone who has/will favourite and follow this story, it means so much to me and thank you all so much! Also thank you to you lovely people who have left a review, I live for your comments! Also, if you have _any_ questions regarding this AU/plot, my inbox is always open, on here, dA and Tumblr, and theartisserie will also accept these on her Tumblr. Now! Without further ado, please leave a review because I'd love to hear from you and enjoy the story! **


	3. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Himaruya Hidekazu. The plot of this AU belongs to myself and theartisserie.**

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 _"_ _How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world." —Anne Frank_

 **o**

A surprise was awaiting Matthias when he got back from the café the next day.

After he had exchanged notes (or rather obtained) and laughed and joked with Ludwig and Anne for a solid two hours, Matthias came home to find Lukas lounging on the couch under a blanket, with a paperback in his hands and the heater on. When he heard Matthias coming through the door, he put the book down and caused the couch to make a series of squeaky sounds as he turned around to face the doorway.

'Hey,' he greeted. 'You got everything you needed?'

Matthias nodded, dumping his bag near his bedroom door and slipping his shoes and coat off. He walked up to Lukas and, leaping over the back of the couch, sat next to him, bringing the other end of the blanket up to his chin.

'It's fucking freezing… It's only September, why is it so cold?'

Lukas shrugged nonchalantly. He stood up from his seat, got his end of the blanket and wrapped it around Matthias' head. 'I've got coffee in the kitchen… do you want a cup?' he asked, his cheeks slightly pink. He had wrapped Matthias up like a burrito, so only his face and a tuft of blond hair could be seen.

Matthias grinned and nodded in reply to Lukas' question. 'That'd be great, thanks.'

'Oh, by the way, someone left this by the door for you,' Lukas told him, pointing to an envelope on their coffee table. 'Probably from one of your many lovers…'

Matthias let out an irritated sound. 'For the love of Christ, just because I'm pan doesn't mean I'm some kind of a… you know!' he yelled at Lukas' retreating back as he went into the kitchen. He heard a series of quiet laughs from his roommate, and he scowled, obviously having not picked up on the joking tone Lukas had.

Somehow managing to get his arms out of his blanket cocoon, Matthias reached for the table. Taking the envelope from it, Matthias slid his thumb into the opening and slipped out a piece of paper from it. Frowning, he shook out the letter and read the first line. He froze in shock when he did.

 _Shipping dock, 33/4 Rockdale Ave, West End. 9 pm 23_ _rd_ _September. Rogue Assassin present. Be there. More information on other side._

His heart skipped a beat. Turning over the page, Matthias saw more words, bolded sections and scribbles in red ink all over it. All of it looked typed, even the scribbles, which immediately spelt out to Matthias that this letter was of utmost importance. It most definitely had something to do with his previous activities…

 _Has someone noticed me? What is this?_

He had little time to ponder on that thought when he heard Lukas coming out of the kitchen. He stuffed the letter back in the envelope and wedged it between his leg and the arm of the couch. He couldn't risk Lukas finding out about who he really was… He'd never get his forgiveness if he knew…

'So… Who's it from?' Lukas asked him, coming out of the kitchen with two cups of coffee in his hands. 'Susie? Adam?'

Taking the proffered coffee mug, Matthias glared at Lukas. 'They are long done, Lukas,' he said, then paused. 'Adam was back in high school, what are you on about? And Susie and I are no longer going out, haven't been for months—besides, what's it to you?'

'Matt… I was kidding,' Lukas told him, gazing at him sincerely as he sat down next to him. 'To be honest, I don't care who you date.'

 _You would if it was you I was dating,_ Matthias thought. _Now you I'd gladly date._ He unwrapped the blanket from his shoulders and put one half around Lukas', mindful of spilling his or Lukas' drinks. Without saying a word, Lukas snuggled closer to Matthias so that their arms were touching, and Matthias felt his stomach doing flips. _This is some romantic novel type shit right here, oh my god._ He glanced at Lukas from the corner of his eye. _I wonder what it would be like to kiss him…_

'But in all seriousness, who's it from?' Lukas asked, completely oblivious to Matthias' inner thoughts.

Matthias blinked and shook his head. 'I have no idea… they didn't leave a name,' he told him, which was no lie; there had been no signature written upon the paper at all. 'It's nothing important anyway, just someone having a gag.'

Lukas raised an eyebrow. 'What did it say?'

'Ah, it's nothing, don't worry about it,' Matthias told him, wincing at every lie he told him. He hated lying to Lukas, but what choice did he have?

Taking a sip of his coffee, Lukas studied Matthias' face. Then he pointed to the table and said, 'Can you pass me my book?'

Obliging, Matthias tried not to squeal out loud when Lukas shifted his position to make himself more comfortable, and by doing so, rested his head on Matthias' thigh with his legs hanging over the other arm of the couch. Opening his book, he glanced at Matthias, said, 'Stop staring… you're comfortable, that's all,' and proceeded to read. Matthias grinned and leant his head against the back of the couch, moving the blanket so it covered parts of both of them before closing his eyes for a bit and occasionally sipping at his drink. They stayed that way for an hour, which gave Matthias plenty of time to think.

The letter had his mind spinning with questions. Why him? What did they know about him? Who was this "Rogue Assassin" fellow mentioned? What was really going on? He didn't know how to answer any of them… But something told him that he had to read that letter very carefully and do whatever it told him in order to find out.

Sooner rather than later, Lukas, since it was his turn that night, announced he was going to make dinner and dumped his book on the coffee table. Matthias immediately missed the source of warmth when Lukas sat up, feeling a chill run up the spot where Lukas' head had been. He pouted at Lukas' back as he went in the direction of the kitchen. When he had vanished, the pout went away and Matthias brought out the envelope from its hiding spot.

According to the letter, Matthias had less than two hours to read everything and to make himself present at the shipping dock. He had so many unanswered questions… But he had to know what the rest of the letter said. Making sure Lukas was out of sight and unable to see him, Matthias got out the letter from the envelope and flipped it over, reading:

 _This information I am providing you is extremely important. It will help you narrow down the criminal in order to apprehend him without anyone getting harmed. It is important that you read everything. Good luck._

With that message clear in his mind, Matthias began to read, checking every now and then to see if Lukas was watching him.

 **.**

When he had managed to successfully sneak out of the dormitory after dinner, Matthias set off towards West End. It wasn't that far of a distance from the university, about a twenty minute walk. Thus, Matthias checked his surroundings once more before breaking out into a run towards the main street. He was making good time, as the large clock tower near the university read half past eight. According to his source, the man who he was looking for would appear at nine. He had to be ready.

The letter had given him some degree of an idea of what was going on. It was just another job for him to do, just as he usually did. Nothing new whatsoever. Yet as he jogged past the main square, near a few back alleyways, Matthias couldn't help but feel like something was different. There was an element of mystery surrounding the whole thing, and he still wasn't entirely sure what was going on, if there was something major going on in the first place.

As he ventured down the main street, something moving in the shadows caused Matthias to slow to a stop. He paused, pretending to tie his shoelaces, which had actually come undone. He watched from the corner of his eye as the thing moved again before disappearing down the alleyway. Matthias let out a huff, and embarked down the alleyway.

It was dark and dank, the moonlight not reaching the depths completely. Shreds of light illuminated large bins and empty cardboard boxes, and the stench of rotting waste filled the place. Matthias wrinkled his nose in distaste, but when he saw something move again, the thought flew from his mind.

All of a sudden, Matthias was sent sprawling backwards as something whizzed past him. It took him only a moment to realise that the assailant was exactly as the letter he had received had described him to be. He ran after the fleeing figure down the abandoned alleyway, inwardly shuddering at the fact that he felt like he was being closely watched…

His shoes clacked on the cement and his breath came out in short puffs. He could sense more bodies appearing around him as he ran, yet he couldn't figure out if they were chasing him or the same person he was after. _Is this an ambush? What the hell is happening?_ Matthias didn't want to take his chances, so he kept running.

He had the man in his sights. He was a tall thing, skinny like a pole, attired in black. His face, and therefore his identity, was hidden by a woollen balaclava. Not that Matthias needed to know his identity. No… He had a job to do, and that was to catch the bastard. He shuddered at the thought of the man's crimes he had read about in the letter he received. The man, dubbed by the general public as the "Rogue Assassin", was accountable for multiple murders in the area, along with forced prostitution, numerous drug offences and, according to his source, was a main instigator in the local mafia.

The man was dangerous beyond belief. Matthias was determined to apprehend him, even if it killed him. That was his job, had been since he had discovered he had the ability to change the world. _If Ludwig saw me now…_

Although it seemed that the other figures he sensed had more or less the same idea as him. He could hear their footfalls—one faster than the rest, although Matthias couldn't tell the exact speed—close behind and around him. He had a strange feeling that one was running along the metal bars of a warehouse nearby…

He felt his skin grow warm and he looked down to see his hands being lit up with orange embers. He quickly extinguished them, not wanting to reveal anything just yet. He was going to showcase his power when the time came to capture the Rogue Assassin. A large smile formed on his face at the thought and a low chuckle passed his lips. Lifting his hood over his head, tightening the strings and adjusting his sunglasses, Matthias kept running, pumping his sore legs in sheer willpower.

As he ran, Matthias came to an opening of an abandoned warehouse off the corners of the alleyway. Slowing down, he entered and paused in the middle of the empty space, turning this way and that to try and pinpoint where the Rogue Assassin had vanished to. It was eerily quiet, and Matthias felt exposed. He could feel his heart beating against his ribs, and his breath came out in white clouds.

Something was about to happen, Matthias knew that much. All he could hear was a faint whistle of the wind in the cracks of the walls—other than that, nothing. He also noticed that the footfalls of his companions had stopped. _Where did they go?_

Then Matthias' world turned upside down and a flare of pain went up his side. Quickly scrambling to his feet after a moment of shock, his eyes landed on a figure lurking in the shadows. Their arm was outstretched and—was it made out of stone?

They stepped into the light and Matthias' breath hitched in horror. The figure had the stature of a man, taller than Matthias and stockier in size. He couldn't see his face for a balaclava hid his features, but a shiver of fear racked his spine when he realised that he was staring at a stone figure, with no colour on him other than the clothes he wore. However, that fear turned into fury when Matthias realised that the guy was the one who hit him.

'You bastard… What do you think you're doing?' he growled, making his voice lower than it usually was. He couldn't risk detection, not now, not while he was so close…

The man said nothing. Matthias snarled and his skin grew warmer as the seconds went by. Embers erupted on his hands and his arms, slightly singing his shirt sleeves—but Matthias was so angry that he didn't care. This guy had ruined his plans, he had attacked him with an unknown motive, and now, he was going to pay.

Little did Matthias note that fire against a stone man would be fruitless.

With a roar, Matthias launched himself upon Stone Man, only to be knocked back with a groan. Regaining his balance, he sent a blast of fire at the man, who simply dodged it by sidestepping and he leaped towards Matthias. He had little time to react before the stone man's hands enclosed around Matthias' throat and squeezed. Matthias' vision blurred and black spots danced at the corners. He felt his back hit a wall and the fingers around his neck tightened. Spluttering, he shot fireball after fireball at Stone Man, but to no avail. He was losing… He was so close to passing out...

Their struggle for dominance was suddenly broken apart as a knife lodged itself in the wall, just next to Matthias' ear. He felt a warm sensation trickle down the side of his face, and it came to him that the knife had gone through the side of his hood and nicked the top of his ear. Stone Man had relaxed his grasp on Matthias' throat as a reaction to the sudden appearance of the weapon. Then Stone Man ended up on the floor as his legs gave way, allowing Matthias to see a new opponent on the field and to heave in gulps of air.

This one was shorter than Stone Man and slightly heavier in shape. He was currently crouched and Matthias groaned inwardly at the inability to see his features. A black piece of fabric covered his eyes and nose, revealing only the bottom half of his face. A smirk graced his lips as Stone Man leapt to his feet and let out a low growl. Both Matthias and Stone Man watched as the shorter male rose to his feet and placed his gloved hands on his hips. On his hips, Matthias saw that he had a belt that contained several knives, three guns and a dagger.

 _He's like… a short ninja…_ he thought. _What the fuck?_

And a short ninja he was as he grabbed his dagger and threw it at Matthias—who only had a split second to dodge it—before he ran off into the shadowed part of the space. Matthias and Stone Man exchanged a brief look before hurtling off towards the place where Short Ninja had disappeared. They only made a few steps towards it before Stone Man let out a grunt behind Matthias. Turning around, Matthias saw Short Ninja on Stone Man's shoulders, his legs acting as an anchor as his arms wrapped around Stone Man's head. Matthias watched in alarm as Stone Man lost his balance and, using his momentum, Short Ninja somersaulted off his shoulders and landed into another crouching position on the floor.

He turned to Matthias and broke into a run towards him. Matthias, in response, ignited his hands and sent a ball of fire plunging towards Short Ninja. Short Ninja let out a high-pitched yelp as it hit him on the side, creating a hole in his shirt. But that didn't stop him as Matthias found himself on the floor with Short Ninja raising a fist to sock him in the chin.

But then Short Ninja was knocked over and sent sprawling to the ground as an unseen force caused a wave of wind. Jumping to his feet, Matthias was astounded to see yet another rival. But before he could take in anything about them, they rushed off to the other side of the space and rammed their shoulder into Stone Man—who had gotten to his feet—who was sent flying backwards into a wall. A dent was all that remained when Stone Man fell to the ground.

 _Fucking hell, it's Sonic the Hedgehog!_ Matthias mused, his mouth agape at what he had just seen.

He had little time to ponder on that when he caught a flash of light from the corner of his eye. Diving to his left, he narrowly missed a ball of some kind of glowing phenomenon, which exploded and fizzled out when it crashed into yet another wall. Whipping his head to the centre of the room, Matthias saw a fifth figure, but this one had something about him that caused Matthias to freeze in fear.

He stood up straight, with his arms by his sides and his palms raised. A blue glow surrounded his form, and his eyes gleamed with the same hue. In his hands were swirling balls of light, which consistently grew larger. Behind him, as if it were his bodyguard, was a transparent, green creature, its mane of hair floating. If he wasn't dressed in a hoodie, jeans and a shirt, Glowy could have passed as some kind of regal magician. Matthias was in instant awe.

His awe warped into surprise when Glowy let out a yell and hurdled towards Matthias. Matthias screamed as a force of light hit him square in the chest, sending him once again on the floor. His chest burned with the foreign feeling, and he felt his skin go warm as the embers resumed their places. He was on his feet again and shooting fire towards the majestic Glowy.

Soon, all that was heard was the grunts of all the players in the place, along with the _whoosh_ of fire and wind caused by Matthias and Sonic, the low hum of the outlandish creature that overshadowed them all and the yelps whenever someone got hit.

Matthias' emotions were in a wreck—fury, fear, excitement and pride—causing his head to ache, along with the rest of his body. He was getting tired, but the others around him seemed to be showing no signs of weakness, so he attempted to hide his fatigue.

His objective hit him full in the face once he had given a good fire punch in the jaw to Glowy. The Rogue Assassin… where had he gone?

Matthias had been so wrapped up in battle that he had forgotten his agenda and his reason for sneaking out of campus in the first place. _Shit Matthias! You and your pride! Now he's scarpered, you idiot!_ He had to get the Rogue Assassin… He had to, it was his duty. But once his arm got slashed by one of Short Ninja's flying knives, Matthias lost his cool.

'FUCK YOU GUYS!' he hollered, heaving in large breaths. 'You're ruining my plan! Fuck, now the Rogue Assassin has disappeared, and you've ruined my chances of getting him!'

'I'm sorry, what?' Short Ninja retorted from his spot on the floor, where he had gotten Stone Man into a headlock. ' _Your_ plan? I had that arsehole in my sights and then you two—' He looked at Matthias and Stone Man. '—started having a fight! If anyone's plans have been ruined, it's mine!'

Matthias' vision turned red and an inhuman roar bubbled from his throat as he sent fire hurtling towards Short Ninja. Short Ninja, aware of the oncoming attack, rolled off Stone Man and got to his feet. He came up close to Matthias and gave him a punch to the stomach. Matthias retaliated with a shot of fire aimed at him, but much to his despair, Short Ninja dodged it once again. Short Ninja then whipped out a gun and pointed it at Matthias. Everything became still as his eyes settled on the barrel of the weapon.

Glowy and Sonic stopped wrestling with each other and turned their attentions to Short Ninja and Matthias. Stone Man—but then he wasn't Stone Man anymore for his flesh rippled and returned to its normal state—stood from the ground and observed silently at what was occurring.

Matthias let out a scoff. 'Are you for real?' He raised his hands as he stared Short Ninja down. 'Go ahead. Shoot me, you dickhead.'

Short Ninja remained silent, with his armed hand aimed at Matthias. Matthias wandered what he was thinking for he couldn't tell with the fabric he had on. Short Ninja laughed shortly and stashed his gun away into his belt. 'I don't have time for this,' he grumbled as he turned away.

As he began to run towards a secluded part of the place, Matthias heard Sonic growl, 'Oh no you don't,' before he whizzed over to Short Ninja in less than a second and grabbed the fabric that sat around his head. He pulled it clean off and Short Ninja shouted in fury.

When he turned around, however, Matthias let out a loud gasp. It couldn't be…

'Give that back to me, you little jerk!' Short Ninja bellowed, jumping at Sonic to get his piece of fabric back.

His violet eyes were alight with an anger Matthias had never seen in them before. His mouth was curved in a grimace, with his teeth bared and his eyebrows furrowed in annoyance. His pale blond hair was sticking up in all directions, a result of the black fabric being removed in such a hurry. He couldn't believe what he was seeing.

Matthias noticed that Sonic was standing still, almost as if he recognised Short Ninja as well. 'You…' he whispered, voice laced with shock. 'I never thought it would be you… Tino.'

Tino's eyebrows shot into his hairline. 'What? How do you know who I am?'

Sonic said nothing, just merely removed his hood and the goggles that covered his eyes, and shook his hair about. Matthias' voice caught in his throat when he saw who it was. _This is a fucking nightmare… What is going on?_

'Holy…' Tino stepped back. 'This can't be real. Emil?'

'Emil?' Glowy asked. His hood fell back and Matthias almost let out a scream in frustration. This couldn't be happening… It just couldn't be!

'Lukas!' Emil cried, dropping his goggles and Tino's fabric. His eyes darted from Tino to Lukas. 'Jesus… we're all superhuman then?'

Matthias shook his head to clear it, albeit unsuccessfully. There they were, three of his closest friends, with burns and scratches with bruises starting to form on their pale skins. They were like him… All this time, they had been like him. He suddenly felt less guilty about keeping his secret from them.

He moved his attention to Stone Man. _I wonder…_

'I suppose you're Berwald,' he told him, alerting the other three. 'Aren't you?'

Stone Man stared at Matthias for a strained moment before he reached a hand to his head and removed his balaclava. Blond hair fell into his eyes, which Matthias realised were not behind glasses. Berwald raised his eyebrow quizzically, causing a thin strand of red to trail down his cheek. Tino let out a gasp and an expression of horror morphed on Emil's face. Berwald gave them a nod and hung his head with a grimace. His hand landed on the back of his head, only to come away wet with blood seconds later. He immediately pressed his balaclava to the wound.

'Then that means…' Lukas settled his stoic gaze on Matthias. 'You're the dumb Dane.'

Ignoring Lukas' comment about him being dumb, Matthias removed his sunglasses and dropped his hood. Tino let out a whimper and sighed. Emil simply stood where he was, shaking his head. Berwald refused to look anywhere other than his shoes and Lukas… Who knew what he was thinking?

Emil buried his head in his hands. 'What the hell is going on?'

* * *

 _ **To be continued...**_


	4. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Himaruya Hidekazu. The plot of this AU belongs to myself and the artisserie.**

* * *

 _"_ _Nobody knows anybody for sure, not even the best of friends. But it is acceptance that allows for the friendships to remain intact."_

 **o**

It took them a while to get their heads around each other, but even then Matthias was still sitting in shock.

The Rogue Assassin did end up getting away after all. They had searched the grounds in silence, too stunned at the newfound knowledge they had acquired to speak. Matthias had kept shooting amazed looks at the others, unable to fully comprehend what had happened between them. The only thing that they managed to reveal to each other was how they knew where to go and who to target: every one of them had received the exact same letter.

This inability to grasp the previous events had followed them all the way into Lukas' and Matthias' dormitory room. Given their past experiences in secret nightly activities, the pair had stacks of medical supplies stashed away in various parts of the unit, which were now being put to good use. A number of bloodied tissues, cotton balls and strands of medical tape lay scattered on the carpet and the coffee table.

Berwald was seated on the edge of the couch, nursing an icepack on the back of his head. His eyebrow had been taped up and the blood had been cleaned off his face and neck. Emil, who had the least injuries out of everyone, helped with disinfecting and handing out certain things for certain wounds. He was currently helping Tino by rubbing in burn ointment on his side, his face in one of deep concentration. Matthias hissed as Lukas applied antiseptic to the slash on his arm, grimacing at the faint fizzing sound it made as the liquid spread into it and the stinging sensation that followed.

'Go easy on the antiseptic, would ya?' he cried, pouting. 'That hurts!'

'I'm going easier on you than you did with me and Tino,' Lukas shot back, pointing briefly to the white patch on his jaw and flicking his gaze over to Tino. He had put his shirt down and was checking up on Berwald. Emil had vanished to the kitchen, only to come back seconds later with another icepack for Berwald.

Matthias' face contorted with guilt and he muttered an apology. Lukas waved a dismissive hand before wrapping a bandage around Matthias' arm with careful fingers. Matthias appreciated the gentleness of Lukas' actions and his cheeks went warm.

The group worked silently for a few minutes. They didn't know what to say or to do other than fix their injuries and think deeply about what had happened. Matthias was interested as to how their source, the author of their letters, knew them and how they knew where to find them. _The next time they come to drop off a letter, I'm gonna catch 'em,_ Matthias vowed, his eyes trained on the door. _How could they know about us?_

Then, perhaps in an attempt to break the strained silence, Tino spoke, bringing Matthias out of his scheming thoughts.

'So… When did everyone find out?' His voice was small, awkward and hesitant. 'You know, about their powers?'

A stifled chuckle came from the corner of the room. Everyone turned to look at Emil shaking his head in amusement, a slight smirk playing at his mouth. He saw them all staring and the smirk disappeared.

'What?'

'Perhaps you would like to start,' Tino said simply. 'When did you find out you had super speed?'

Emil blinked once before setting his gaze on his nails. 'I was ten. I was at a carnival, in a hundred-metre sprint.' He allowed a subtle grin to form as he looked up to face them. 'I came first.'

Tino's attempt at reprimanding him was interrupted by Matthias letting out an appreciative whistle. ' _Nice._ '

'But that's cheating! Don't encourage him!' Tino scolded, causing laughs from both Matthias and Emil, and a small grin from Lukas and Berwald.

'It's not cheating if no one knows about it,' Emil said matter-of-factly. 'Besides, all the other kids who entered were douchebags. They deserved to have their butts kicked.'

'Wait a second…' They turned their heads to face Lukas and watched as his eyes went round. He raised his arm dramatically, and pointed a finger at his step-brother. ' _You!_ You're the… You're the bank robbery kid!'

 _What?_ Matthias' sentiment was shared by both Tino and Berwald, with whom he exchanged confused looks. Emil, on the other hand, blanched, buried his head in his hands and groaned loudly.

'Oh my god.' Emil's expression turned sheepish. 'You remember that?'

A series of startled noises came from the rest of them, which led to demands of details of this new discovery. It only resulted in a flustered Emil shouting, 'LEAVE ME ALONE, JESUS CHRIST.'

'Anyway, what about you, Tino?' Emil asked, his cheeks pink. 'I assume your fighting skills aren't your superpower?'

'Hold on, speaking of that.' Matthias' mouth fell open. 'Where the _fuck_ did you learn those moves? You were like _whoa_ , and then you were doing all these crazy flips and shit.' Matthias was in awe and his eyes sparkled, like a little child's when they had gotten the best gift ever. ' _How?_ '

Tino shrugged nonchalantly, turning bright red. 'Karate. I-It's nothing special you know... Just something I had an interest in when I was a kid. And you're right Emil, my fighting skills are not my superpower.' Tino looked from person to person, his expression one of embarrassment. 'I don't know if you'd classify this as a superpower per se but… I have heightened senses. I guess the best way to explain it is that all my senses are much stronger than a normal person's. I can see things clearer, especially in the dark. I can smell and hear things that are metres away from me. Everything I touch and taste is much more noticeable than it used to be. I became aware of all this when I was around twelve…'

Matthias saw Tino shudder and an uncomfortable look formed on his face. He could tell that he wasn't keen on revealing any more information, but that didn't stop Matthias staring at the younger male in admiration. The guy had some _serious_ skills.

'You don't have to go into any more detail if you don't want to, Tino,' Matthias told him, smiling at him. Tino sent him a look of gratitude.

'So Berwald… What's your story?' Emil inquired leaning back against the arm of his chair. He knew that Tino wasn't going to say anything else. 'You turn into stone?'

'Yeah,' said Berwald, 'among other things.'

When he received blank looks, he dropped the melting icepack on the coffee table and coughed. Standing up, he scanned the room before walking over to the entrance door. Matthias and the others watched as he clutched the doorknob in his grasp and his skin started to ripple and roll. Soon, they were staring at a metal Berwald, his copper flesh glimmering from the lights. Matthias' jaw dropped.

'I did some research,' Berwald said. 'It's called "property absorption". I can turn into most solid materials.' He scratched his head, which had returned to its normal blond state. 'I have to touch the material though—so no, I can't turn into kryptonite,' he said hurriedly as Matthias opened his mouth. 'It doesn't exist.'

He sulked, his bottom lip sticking out. 'That's no fun then.'

Berwald rolled his eyes and came back to sit down on the couch, returning the limp icepack to his head. Wincing slightly, he muttered, 'I was eleven when I found out. Turned into the same metal as a set of keys I was holding.'

Matthias saw Berwald's grip on his icepack stiffen and the muscles in his jaw tighten. His eyes had darkened and he looked as if he was in another world. Matthias wondered what the meaning behind it was…

'Matt?' Tino aimed at Matthias, gesturing for him to explain.

Snapping out of his thoughts, Matthias sucked in a breath before letting it out quickly. 'Well… I can make fire, so any part of my body can catch alight and it won't hurt me. The only things it will hurt are other people and my clothes,' he muttered, fingering the singed sleeves of his hoodie.

'So you produce fire?' Emil asked. 'Is that it?'

Grinning, Matthias shook his head. 'Not exactly.' An idea popped into his mind and his eyes landed on the candle sitting upon the tabletop. 'Can you light that candle for me, Emmy?'

The teenager scowled at Matthias' nickname for him but grabbed the box of matches sitting near the candle. Pulling one out, he swiped it against the box's side and Matthias waited for him to place it near the wick before he made his move. When it caught alight, Matthias forced the flame jump a few inches into the air above it, causing poor Emil to let out a squeak in surprise and reel backwards in alarm. He brought the little ember hurtling towards himself, making it stop just before his nose.

'There's this thing called pyrokinesis,' Matthias told them, transferring the flame to his pointer finger. 'I can generate fire… But I can also control it by making it bigger—' He made the flame grow larger. '—making it smaller—' He shrunk the flame to its original size. '—or by simply making it disappear.' He extinguished it, leaving his finger smoking. 'I was thirteen when I found out. I, uh… kind of set something alight and it got out of control.'

Sending them a sheepish grin, the others shook their heads, supressing smiles.

'So that leaves you,' Tino said to Lukas. 'How does yours work?'

When he didn't answer straight away, Matthias glanced at him. He saw that Lukas was looking at him in a daze, though his expression was vacant. When Tino said his name again, he snapped his head towards him, mild confusion written across his features. 'Sorry, what?'

Tino smiled at him. 'Tell us about your power.'

Lukas nodded and stared at his hands. He lifted them to his face, and Matthias and the others watched as they assumed a faint blue hue. Pressing them together briefly, he brought them out about the same width as his face, and Matthias saw a ball of swirling light in between Lukas' palms. His eyes glowed the same colour, the light so bright it hurt to look at.

'I don't what you guys would call it,' he said, his voice strangely filled with more emotion than usual, 'but I call it magic. I know some call it something like energy projection… But magic sounds more mysterious than _energy projection_ in my opinion.'

The others watched in fascination as Lukas' eyes grew ever brighter and a familiar low hum filled the room. Matthias yelped in fright and lurched forward in his seat when something brushed past the back of his neck. Peeking over his shoulder, he saw the shimmering creature he had seen earlier at the boathouse hovering behind the chair, though it was much smaller than he remembered it to be. It let out a gentle rumble, its eyes calculating… At least, as calculating as gleaming eyes could get. Its large hand rested on top of Matthias' head, and he was astounded to discover that there was no weight. The creature grinned before it vanished, leaving behind a breeze to rush through the room.

Lukas slumped against the back of his seat, his eyes shut and arms hung by his sides. Matthias froze when he saw that his roommate had gone very pale, but when he made a move to see if he was okay, Lukas help up a hand and shook his head.

'It's fine… I'm just tired,' he said, sitting up slowly. 'It takes more energy to conjure him up than my usual power. Obviously he's bigger when I have more energy… But tonight's taken it out of me.' He grunted as he rubbed his forehead. 'Ah, I shouldn't have done that…'

'What was that?' Berwald asked, still looking at the spot where the creature had been.

'Hm? Oh, him? He's my… what do you call it… combat avatar—I call him _trollet_.'

'"The troll"?' Berwald's eyebrows rose in intrigue. 'He's pretty spectacular.'

'You should see him in his full size,' Lukas told him. 'He's bigger than this room.'

'How old were you when you found all this out?' Emil then asked him, head cocked to the side in inquiry.

Lukas was silent for a moment, but suddenly all of his emotion was channelled through his heavy glower—despite his apparent fatigue—and his voice was laced with a hatred of some sort as he spat out, 'Fourteen. Too little too late.'

Tino frowned. 'What do you mean by that?'

Lukas glanced at Tino briefly before mumbling solemnly, 'I don't want to talk about it…'

Matthias, about to say something, was interrupted by Emil letting out a loud yawn. He blinked wearily, the lilac glazed over with sleep. Matthias smiled at the sight, and instead said, 'I think Emmy's a little tired… Maybe we should all take a leaf out of his book.'

Emil's cheeks went pink once again and was about to argue back when another yawn came his way. Tino laughed and stood up from his seat with his arms above his head in a stretch. Berwald followed suit, heading into the kitchen with the icepack and dumping it back in the freezer.

'It is late… Perhaps we should call it a night,' said Tino, glancing at the clock on the wall; the hands were nearing midnight. 'We can talk more in the morning or something.'

Everyone agreed and Matthias got up from his chair and led Tino, Berwald and Emil to the door. When he bade them goodnight, he turned to see Lukas disappearing into the bathroom as he shut the door behind him. Hearing the brief sound of running water, Matthias let out a sigh. He knew Lukas was angry, he could tell from the way he had spoken moments earlier. But what he was angry about, Matthias had no idea. He knew he had to find out though.

'Luke?' he called tentatively.

Walking towards the bathroom, Matthias leant against the doorframe, crossing his arms over his chest. Lukas, with a toothbrush in his mouth, lifted his gaze from the sink to the mirror, his eyes immediately locking onto Matthias' form in the doorway. They narrowed slightly at him and he bent down to spit into the sink.

'What do you want?' Lukas asked coldly, and his tone made Matthias wince inwardly. He stuck his toothbrush back into his mouth and proceeded to glare at his roommate through the glass.

Matthias licked his lips. 'I came to check up on you,' he said. 'You're not yourself.'

Lukas raised his eyebrow in mock surprise before he spat into the sink again and turned the tap on. He let out a short sound as he washed his toothbrush. He placed it rather aggressively into its holder once he had done so.

'I'm not myself, am I?' Lukas muttered coolly. 'And why would that be?'

Matthias shrugged. 'You tell me. I can tell you're mad… So what's the problem?'

Having rinsed and washed his face, Lukas grabbed his towel and turned around to face Matthias fully, his lips in a tight line. Matthias had known Lukas since primary school, so he knew that when Lukas gave him the silent treatment or was short with his responses it was usually because it was he who had done something wrong. Though as he racked through his brain for a reason, Matthias couldn't figure out what he had possibly done wrong to get a reaction like this.

'Luke… Talk to me,' he told him, desperate for an answer. 'It's better to talk things out than to bottle it all up—'

'Okay, you want me talk?' Lukas challenged, voice deadly low. 'I'll talk. You said you were thirteen, right?' He chucked his towel on the bench. 'Then tell me, Matthias, did you perhaps consider using your power to—oh, I don't know—help us out?'

It took Matthias a short moment to figure out what Lukas was talking about, and when he did, he felt as if he had been slapped in the face.

'Lukas, are you serious? Are you actually asking if I—'

'Did it cross your mind?' Lukas interrupted, his eyes ablaze. 'Tell me at least that, did it cross your mind?'

Matthias spluttered in disbelief before squeaking out, 'Is that even a question? Of course it crossed my fucking mind! You have no idea how many times I wanted to come into that house and do something, _anything!_ As soon as I discovered what I could do, I started formulating all these plans about how I could sneak in and scare him away to leave you guys alone.' He shrugged hopelessly. 'But I couldn't do it. Not without setting the entire house on fire and killing everyone in it.'

A strained pause filled the void between them and Matthias' mind spun. This night alone had drained all the energy out of him, and his poor brain couldn't handle all the information he had gained in the few hours he had spent with the others. But this thing with Lukas sent his sentiments diving to a whole new level. He felt hurt that Lukas thought he wouldn't have stepped up if he could have.

Lukas hung his head. 'I'm sorry,' he said. 'Of course you wouldn't have been able to do anything—we were just kids after all.' He sent a sad smile Matthias' way. 'I'm just looking to blame someone other than myself… I'm really sorry.'

Matthias' expression softened. 'Lukas, if you're going to blame anyone, blame that son-of-a-bitch who—'

'Forget I said anything, Matt.'

'Lukas, I—'

'Just _forget it_ , okay?' Lukas rubbed his temple with his fingertips. 'Goodnight, Matthias.'

He sent him a small smile, before brushing past Matthias and heading into his room. Matthias, knowing not to argue, mumbled, ''Night,' as Lukas' bedroom door closed with a _click_. He knew that he and Lukas had reached some kind of an understanding… so why did he still feel as if he was the one responsible?

 **.**

When Matthias walked into Engineering the next day, a strangled splutter came from his classmate. He slid into the seat next to him and waggled his fingers at him, not at all fazed as Ludwig's eyes roved over his face.

'What the hell happened to you?' he stuttered, eyes round. 'You look like you've been through a mill!'

Matthias laughed shortly. 'Well, that sounds about right actually…'

Ludwig glared at him. 'This is not something to joke about, Matthias. Look at your ear!' His face came awfully close to Matthias'. 'There's a nasty shiner coming out… _Gott,_ did you get into a fight last night?'

While he appreciated Ludwig's concern, Matthias' eye twitched in annoyance. Whenever it came to situations other than the one that he was currently in, Ludwig was serene if rather scary with his stern appearance. But Matthias knew his hidden side, and that was acting like a mother hen whenever the moment for it arose. He knew he couldn't avoid Ludwig forever, so he let out a huff.

'I went out last night to get some things for home and got caught up trying to defend myself,' he told Ludwig, the lie burning on his tongue. 'An overly drunk guy with a knife is not fun to deal with…'

'Oh _Gott_.' Ludwig's jaw went slack. 'Did you call the police? Is everything okay? Did you seek medical attention—?'

'It's _fine_ , Ludwig,' Matthias told him; a headache was well on its way and he groaned inwardly. 'Seriously.'

Ludwig shut his mouth, but his expression indicated that he was not convinced. Matthias was really not in the mood for another one of Ludwig's infamous lectures.

'Anne here yet?' he asked him, eager to change the topic.

Ludwig shook his head. 'Her roommate saw me in the corridor and told me she's not well, so she's not coming today.' He frowned at Matthias. 'And don't change the topic, this is a serious issue!'

Matthias held back a groan of frustration, but his saviour had come in the form of their professor. He entered the lecture hall, apologising profusely for his lateness while taking his essentials out of his bag.

'This conversation isn't over,' Ludwig warned Matthias, chucking on his glasses and facing the lecturer. 'Mark my words.'

Matthias resisted the urge to roll his eyes and focused his attention on their plump professor. He decided he was going to pay Anne a visit after class was over and see how she was doing. It was the least he could do for her.

 _Hopefully she can save me from Ludwig's rant about being careful,_ he thought, scribbling notes into his book for the first time in at least a week.

* * *

 ** _To be continued..._**


	5. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Himaruya Hidekazu. The plot of this AU belongs to myself and the artisserie.**

* * *

 _"_ _It takes one, tiny spark to form a flame."_

 **o**

Over the next few days, Anne had been too poorly to come to class. Matthias and Ludwig had made the habit of visiting her and giving her everything she missed in the lecture. They wished her well when they saw her and also bought her cough lollies and masses of tissues. She assured them both that she'd be back by the end of the week, "bright-eyed and bushy tailed", and that they didn't need to be too worried about her.

Walking out of the dormitory building that morning, Matthias was alarmed to see a multitude of police cars parked on the street nearby. A huddle of students were muttering to each other and pointing at the cars in confusion. Matthias went up to a group of girls, who were whispering heatedly amongst one another, and asked if they knew what was going on.

'Something about a missing person,' was his reply, and Matthias felt surprise course through him. _Missing?_ He thanked the girls and returned his gaze to the police cars. He hoped it wasn't anyone he knew. His breath hitched when he thought of Lukas and Emil… then of Tino and Berwald… He hadn't seen any of them that morning…

'Matt!'

At the shout of his name, Matthias turned to see Ludwig waving and running towards him. When he reached him, Matthias was shocked to see him looking extremely pale, almost as if he had seen a ghost.

'What's going on?' he asked Ludwig, eyes wandering over to the police cars.

Ludwig scanned the area quickly before he leant towards Matthias' ear. 'It's Anne.'

'Anne?' Matthias reeled backwards when realisation hit him full in the face. ' _She's_ the missing person?'

Ludwig nodded. 'I just bumped into her roommate. She was… I think hysterical is the best word to describe her. She told me that when she woke up this morning, Anne wasn't in her room and there was an envelope on their coffee table. Someone's taken her, Matt…'

Matthias' world spun, his expression one of horror. 'Taken?' He couldn't believe it.

'The police want to talk to us,' Ludwig went on, looking uncomfortable. 'Since we know her quite well… They think we may know something.'

'Of course…' Matthias muttered, following Ludwig as he started to walk back towards the dormitory building. 'Anything to help…'

 _This is nuts,_ he thought as they went. _Who would kidnap Anne? It makes no sense!_

His mind filled with possible scenarios as he and Ludwig went into the dormitory building and up the stairs towards the third floor. Each one was worse than the other, and Matthias found himself fearing for Anne's life. He was being ridiculous, he knew that, but he couldn't help it.

Because he had been so deep in his thoughts, he didn't notice that he and Ludwig were standing awkwardly outside the open door of Anne's dormitory room. There was a blue-and-white-chequered piece of tape placed in the middle of the entrance as to prevent anyone but the authorities to enter. Looking into the room, Matthias saw that everything was more or less in its place, other than a few bits of broken glass and a small patch of red on the carpet.

Bile rose in his throat at the sight.

'Ah, is this your friend?'

Reacting to the voice, Matthias saw a short, ragged faced man talking to Ludwig. He smiled sadly at them before lifting the tape and ushering an officer under it.

'Constable Reynolds will take care of you,' he told them, again with that sad smile. 'Constable, these gentlemen are friends of the victim. You know what to do.' He disappeared without another word.

Constable Reynolds was a petite woman with a head of short, brown hair tucked under her hat. Her mouth was in a thin line and her dark eyes gazed seriously at Ludwig and Matthias. She held a small, black notepad in her thin hands with a pen held at a clean page.

'And your names are?'

'I'm Ludwig Beilschmidt, and this is Matthias Køhler,' said Ludwig. The police officer looked lost with the names and Matthias grinned.

'Here,' he said, holding his hand out for the notepad. 'I'll write them out.'

'Thank you,' she said, sending him a look of gratitude. When he had written them out, checking with Ludwig first to see if he had spelt his surname correctly, she took one look at them and said to Matthias, 'You Norwegian?'

He shook his head. 'Nah, Danish. But my roommate is Norwegian.'

The officer nodded and poised her pen against her notepad again, a professional guise upon her face. 'Can you think of anyone who would have a grudge against Miss Richardson?' she asked them.

Matthias couldn't think. He knew that everyone Anne knew loved her, so he couldn't think of anyone who would wish her harm. He told the officer so, and added, 'No one I know has anything to dislike about her… let alone do something like this.'

He saw Ludwig nodding in agreement beside him, his eyes trained on the note lying on the coffee table.

'What does the note say?' Ludwig asked the officer, pointing at it. 'If I may ask you that?'

The officer looked to where he was pointing and sighed. 'It's nothing all that useful, I'm afraid. It just says that she deserves to be kidnapped because of what she had done in the past. Now that's a question I can ask you…'

Matthias frowned deeply at that. He didn't like where this was going. He didn't like where this was going at all.

The officer continued to ask him and Ludwig questions about Anne herself, how long they had known her and what she had been doing for the past few days. They told her that Anne was ill and had been confined to her bed, and they really couldn't see anyone they knew doing something like this to her.

'Do you have any idea who might have done this?' Matthias asked the officer. He was desperate for some kind of an answer, anything that could lead him to some sort of conclusion.

The officer looked thoughtful. 'There has been talk of the perpetrator being a local hooligan by the name of the Rogue Assassin. This sort of thing matches his M.O. Have you heard of him?'

He blanched. _The Rogue Assassin kidnapped Anne? Why? Why would he do that?_ His blood ran cold when all the information he had gotten on the Rogue Assassin came rushing back. _Oh god… Anything but_ that _…_

To answer the officer's question, Matthias nodded and said, 'Yeah, I've heard of him. He's a nasty piece of work, I've heard.'

'I don't know much about him,' Ludwig replied as well. 'All I know is that he's some kind of a criminal that—'

He was interrupted when the supervising officer whispered something in their interviewer's ear. She muttered a 'Yes, sir' before turning back to the pair.

'I suppose I'd best let you go,' said the officer. 'We'll be in touch. We'll do everything we can to help your friend.'

After saying goodbye and thank you to the officer, Ludwig and Matthias walked back down through the dormitory building. Their class was going to feel strangely empty without Anne being there. It was then that Matthias decided that he wasn't going to leave it solely to the police. How could he? Anything could happen to Anne in the meantime! He had to act now.

So he whipped out his phone from his pocket and started contacting his friends. He was going to need a lot of help on this one.

 **.**

It was a bit after five o'clock when Tino, the last person of their group, arrived at Lukas' and Matthias' dormitory room.

'Sorry I'm late!' he said as he walked in. 'The professor held me back… wanted to talk to me about something…'

Matthias grinned at him. 'It's all good. Listen guys, thanks for coming on such short notice,' he told them, shoving his hands into his pockets.

'It's no problem,' Emil said. 'It's better than doing homework, that's for sure. So, what's up?'

Looking at them in silence for a moment, Matthias tried to figure out an effective way to tell them about what had happened to Anne. When nothing concrete came his way, he sighed out, 'I need your help.'

He looked at them imploringly. He took in a few befuddled expressions and continued. 'A friend of mine has gone missing—Anne. She's in my engineering class. Anyway, she was kidnapped last night, the police say. I was questioned by them this morning and they believe it's the work of our dear friend who managed to slip through our fingers last week.'

'The Rogue Assassin?' Tino queried in a puzzled tone. 'What business could he have with your friend? Is she dangerous?'

Matthias shook his head and he suddenly felt uncomfortable. 'Well, we know that he's in the sex trade so… possibly that. As for Anne being dangerous, she's one of the most peaceful people I know. She hasn't got anything to do with that guy… I'm sure of it.'

'How can you know that?' Emil asked him. 'Are you absolutely certain you know everything about her in order to make that judgement?'

'Of course I do!' Matthias said defensively. 'She's my friend! Anne has _nothing_ to do with that arsehole! Besides—'

He was interrupted by a sound coming from the door. The five of them turned their heads in time to see an envelope being pushed under the entrance. Matthias exchanged a brief look with the others before bolting towards it. He heard them get up as well as his hand closed around the handle and turned it to open the door. But as he walked out into the hallway, he found it to be deserted. Looking down both ends, Matthias scowled in defeat and went back into the dormitory. _Dammit! Almost had them!_

The envelope that had been pushed under the door was held in Berwald's large hands. His eyes went from person to person, as if asking permission, before landing on the paper item. He slid it open and carefully took out a rectangular piece of paper the size of a business card. After reading it, Berwald held it up for the others to read:

 _Whereabouts of Rogue Assassin: North Shore Shipping Dock._

 _When: 7:30pm tomorrow night._

 _Be there. Be prepared._

 **.**

The first thing she saw when she woke up was darkness. She felt something covering her eyes, and when she tried to move, she found she could do no such thing. Thick ropes encircled her wrists and ankles, holding her in place. She tugged at them to assess their tightness and discovered, to her surprise, that they were tighter than she anticipated. She wasn't going anywhere anytime soon. That thought alone alarmed her.

She let out a short breath, tilting her head to strain her hearing in case she heard anything. When nothing came to her avail, she started to panic, moving against her restraints in vain. _Where am I? Oh god… oh god, oh god, oh god… someone help me, please!_

'Ah… She finally wakes.'

She froze. Dread filled her being and she realised she was in more danger than she thought she was. She knew that voice… She knew it better than anyone else's. It had been a while since she had heard it, but it sent her mind reeling with memories she had taken so long to suppress nonetheless.

'I have to admit, it took us a while to find you,' the voice continued; it was sharp, cool, and straight to the point. 'You're better at making yourself scarce than we thought.' A laugh pierced the silence. 'But we found you eventually. But really… Anne Richardson? A university student? I did not expect that. How childish.'

More laughter came, echoing in the room. _So there's more of them in here, not just him…_ She licked her dry lips, waiting to see if he was going to say anything else.

'Now that we have you… I think it's high time we settled our score, don't you?' His voice had become louder, though she didn't know how close he was to her until she felt a hand pull her head back. Pain flared where his fingers gripped her hair and she groaned.

'We… settled that ages ago… We won, remember?' she breathed out. She let out a satisfied sound. 'You and your sorry crew had your arses kicked by us. Didn't you end up at the bottom of a pool at some point?'

She let out a cry when his fingers grasped her hair firmer and pulled her head further back. A snarl passed his lips and she felt her gut churn.

'Don't patronise me,' he growled, his breath hot against her ear. 'Don't forget where you stand… You and your bloody friend caused more damage than you realised. And now… you're going to have to pay for that.' She shuddered when she felt the fingers of his other hand wrap around her throat, squeezing softly. 'What better way to do that… than utter betrayal?'

'No…' she mouthed. Her eyes went round behind the fabric. 'Please no, anything but that. She's my best friend, I can't do that to her.'

He chuckled cruelly in her ear. 'Ah, but my dear… _You don't get a choice._ '

He pulled away and she heard his footsteps retreat from her. Then, though faint, she heard him whisper to someone else in the room, 'You know what to do.'

Terror erupted in her body. 'Please, no!' she whimpered, knowing exactly what was about to happen. 'Don't… please, I don't want to hurt her! Please, _no!_ '

She tugged at her restraints in one last attempt of escape. But when she felt her brain being overtaken, being hammered in multiple places and bile rising up her throat, her body tensed, and she let out a long, agonised scream.

* * *

 ** _To be continued..._**


	6. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Himaruya Hidekazu. The plot of this AU belongs to myself and theartisserie.**

* * *

 _"_ _If you're thinking that idea you have is going to go smoothly, think again. There is always something around the corner that will throw you off your course."_

 **o**

As night settled upon the bustling city, one man was waiting on the outskirts of a warehouse. He smiled as his eyes landed on the incoming party of supers, who looked over their shoulders for anyone who might have been watching. They completely missed his presence, much to his pleasure, and entered the abandoned warehouse.

He breathed in deeply and ran through the plan in his head one more time. He had to see just how dangerous these supers were. There had been rumours… rumours about this group of supers being a potential threat, particularly to _them_. He and the others had to make sure that wasn't to be the case.

So he treaded towards the edge of the warehouse and assumed his position by a window. His eyes were trained on the circle of supers, whose identities had been masked by hoods or black fabrics, and thus… he waited.

 **.**

'Are you sure this is the right place?'

Looking at his brother, he sighed in resignation. 'Yes, I am sure. I think I know my surroundings.'

His brother raised his hands in surrender. 'Just checking,' he said, smiling hugely. His face grew serious. 'Besides… We only have one shot at this…'

'I'm aware of that!' he grumbled. He rubbed his forehead with his fingertips. 'Right, let's get down to business, shall we?'

'You know, you terrify me whenever you do that,' his brother muttered, apprehensively watching his younger sibling morph.

He blinked at him. ' _I_ terrify you? _You_ terrify me whenever you do _that_ ,' he retorted, pointing at his older brother, who had transformed into the exact same thing as he had, albeit with his own features. He found it creepy, how his brother just copied him.

His brother grinned wickedly at him. 'Come, brother… We have work to do.'

 **.**

As the brothers put their heads together to formulate a plan, further away, Matthias and Lukas were bickering away heatedly.

'You dumb Dane! We can't do that, it's dangerous!' Lukas growled. 'Do you want to die?'

'Don't be ridiculous, Luke!' Matthias crowed, a smile splitting his cheeks. 'If we do this, we'll be invincible! No one could stop us!'

'That's exactly the type of attitude that is going to get you killed,' Lukas mumbled, shaking his head. He sent Matthias an intense glare. 'And don't call me Luke, idiot. It's _Lukas_.'

'Oi, don't change the subject—you're missing the point!' Matthias grabbed Lukas by the shoulders. 'We could be the dream team! You with your energy projection and me with my fire manipulation—put them together to create an epic superpower—our enemies won't know what hit them!'

'Matthias, you are so stupid, are you trying to—'

'Dude, come on! Stop being so negative, I mean really—'

'Will you two stop arguing? I mean it, don't make me come over there!' Tino scolded, clucking at the pair like a mother hen. 'Seriously, are you mature twenty year olds or two year old children with attitude problems?'

'Who are you, our mother?' Matthias rebutted, and he opened his mouth to continue but stopped at the look Tino sent his way.

'We have a job to do right now, Matthias,' Tino told him earnestly. 'We can talk about that kind of thing later—right now, we need to focus. Especially since it's the person we let get away last time.'

The air around them froze and the temperature dropped. Matthias resisted the urge to growl. He was still sore about missing his chance to catch the Rogue Assassin the night he found out about the others. During that time, the man had done even more damage in terms of his involvement with the local mafia, but now it was personal.

Anne.

Matthias liked Anne, that much was certain, and he had a desire to rescue her and to personally break the Rogue Assassin's nose. He hoped she was alright…

'Emil, you in position?' Tino asked, a finger pressed against the earphone in his ear. They had set up their mobile phones into a five-way call so they could talk to each other despite their positioning throughout the evening. Matthias didn't know how that was possible, but it appeared to be working fine thus far.

'Ready when you are,' was the monotone reply.

Matthias saw Lukas scowl, but neither said a word. While Matthias understood Lukas' intentions with Emil, Tino was right. The Rogue Assassin was back and this time, they had the chance to catch him for good. Nothing was going to get in their way tonight. _Nothing_.

'Yo Ber, you good to go?' Matthias inquired whilst checking the surroundings. A grunt of affirmation in his ear was his answer and Matthias grinned. 'You better be ready for us, you son-of-a-bitch,' he snarled. 'We're gonna bring you down.'

Meanwhile, Tino had vanished to the tops of the building, his boots planted firmly on a metal beam and his eyes scanning the empty space below. Matthias grabbed Lukas' arm and moved him to their position near a box of ropes and chains. He knew where everyone was: Emil was hiding behind one of the shipping containers closest to the entrance, Berwald was blending in with one of the wooden logs, crouched low, and Tino was in his bird's eye spot.

Everyone was in position. Now the time to wait arrived, which was one thing Matthias hated doing. He was ready to move. He was ready to save Anne from danger and to bring her home, to bring her to safety.

'Hey… she'll be okay,' Lukas mumbled, gazing at Matthias fixedly. 'We'll get her to safety.'

Matthias blinked in slight surprise at Lukas' sincerity before a small smile graced his lips. 'Thanks Lukas… I appreciate it.'

A cough from the entrance broke their moment, after which they quickly pulled their hoods up and Matthias chucked on his sunglasses. From where he was, Matthias could see a person moving in, and he could feel his body awaiting to spring into action.

'Guys… we have company,' Tino whispered, his voice low. 'He's here.'

'Let's bring this bastard down!' Matthias said eagerly, only to receive a slap on the arm from Lukas for being too loud.

He heard Tino sigh into the mic. 'Get ready to move,' he muttered. 'Remember, stick to the plan.'

Matthias rocked on the soles of his feet in anticipation. According to the plan, Emil, with his speed, would shut the large, steel sliding door to prevent the Rogue Assassin from escaping, followed by Matthias, Lukas and Berwald working as a trio to distract him. Tino would then, from his vantage point, leap down and knock the guy out. The plan was flawless and Matthias grinned appreciatively at Tino's genius. Nothing could go wrong. Absolutely nothing.

But as the Rogue Assassin dumped a duffel bag at his feet, Lukas pinched Matthias' arm to get his attention. Squeaking at the pain, he glared at him, only to see him pointing in the near distance. Following Lukas' line of sight, Matthias' mouth fell open. _Stupid,_ he cried in his mind as he watched Berwald emerge from the shadows, treading quietly behind their foe, _what are you doing?_ His skin was not as it should have been.

'Berwald, what are you doing?' he hissed into the mouthpiece on his cord. 'You're meant to be made of fucking wood, not metal!'

'That's not me.'

Matthias froze, and scoffed. 'What do you mean that's not you? Of course it's you! I know that shirt—'

'It's not me,' Berwald said again, but this time, it came from behind Matthias and Lukas. Matthias almost screamed out loud, and probably would have if Lukas didn't plant a hand over his mouth as well as his own.

'Jesus Christ, are you trying to give us a heart attack?' Matthias huffed, a hand pressed over his rapidly beating heart.

Berwald rolled his eyes and raised his hands. Matthias saw that they were wooden, unlike the rest of his normal flesh. Realisation hit him and he whipped his head back to the other man in the centre of the space. He looked almost exactly like Berwald: same clothing, similar build, even that stupid balaclava.

'Tino… are you seeing this?' he muttered, feeling overwhelmed.

'Oh, I'm seeing it alright,' Tino replied, sounding hysterical. 'Who is he? He's going to blow the plan into smithereens!'

'Who's to say he hasn't already?' Lukas said under his breath, his eyes on the newcomer.

The trio watched as the Berwald doppelgänger tiptoed closer towards the Rogue Assassin, raising his arms slowly as he did so. The Rogue Assassin was oblivious to what was happening as he was bent over the duffel bag, rummaging through its contents. The doppelgänger stood right behind him, left arm raised with its hand closed in a fist.

'Emil—now! Do it now!' Tino commanded, still somehow managing to keep his cool.

Before Matthias could blink, a rush of wind disturbed the dirt on the floor and the giant door of the place was being pulled shut by Emil. Much to their horror, however, the door only came to about halfway before it refused to move any further. Matthias saw Emil tugging in vain, the ground beneath him smoking as he went beyond normal speed.

'I can't move it!' he grumbled into the earpieces, and a cold chill settled over them. The plan was not off to a good start.

The disruption had caught the attentions of the doppelgänger and the Rogue Assassin, the latter having whipped out a gun from his belt. He aimed it at Emil and let it off with a _bang!_ But Instead of hitting Emil, the bullet pinged against the metal skin of the doppelgänger, who had deflected the shot by stepping into the line of fire. An inhuman roar passed his lips as he lunged towards the Rogue Assassin.

Matthias watched in awe as the event unfolded in front of him. The doppelgänger was in a fist fight with the Rogue Assassin, who was a surprising match in skill. With a kick to the stomach, followed by an almighty _clang_ , the doppelgänger fell backwards onto the ground and the Rogue Assassin turned to flee. Matthias cheered inwardly as he made a beeline straight for him, Lukas and Berwald, and a wicked grin formed at his mouth. It disappeared almost immediately when a loud grunt reached his ears. Looking behind the advancing Rogue criminal, Matthias' jaw dropped when he saw the doppelgänger heaving a large shipping container over his head without breaking a single sweat. With alarming speed, he threw it towards the Rogue Assassin, and therefore at the trio hiding from sight.

'SCATTER!' Matthias yelped, diving to the right as the shipping container came racing their way.

Then, a deafening roar and the sound of crunching metal echoed off the walls of the warehouse. Matthias, from his spot on the floor, gazed up to see Lukas' giant, green troll hovering near the edge of the room for a few seconds before it fizzled out. Peeking over the tops of a few wooden boxes, Matthias saw the shipping container's remains in the far corner of the place. He put two and two together and let out a breath he didn't notice he was holding. _That was close!_

The occurrence seemed to have scared the Rogue Assassin, for he remained in his spot, eyes wide behind his mask. The doppelgänger had frozen where he had thrown the shipping container and Matthias saw Lukas quickly approaching him, his arms glowing green.

Coming back to his senses, the Rogue Assassin took the chance to grab his duffel bag and run for the partially opened door. Throughout the chaos, Emil had still been trying to shut the door, leaving a sizeable hole in the ground as evidence. At the oncoming of their foe, he abandoned his task and raised his fists in preparation for a fight.

But another surprise was awaiting them when something that caused a _whoosh_ went in between Emil and the Rogue Assassin; it almost knocked Emil over, but it was successful in barrelling over the Rogue Assassin. Where the door had gotten stuck, another body had appeared. He was donned in a grey jumper, black jeans, sunglasses and sports cap, and a pair of bright orange Converse. His mouth was pulled back in a large, mischievous smirk.

'Quick! Let's do it together!' he shouted, hands planted firmly on his side of the door. Emil hesitated for a moment, then wrapped his fingers around the handle. 'Ready? GO!'

With their joint effort—and joint speed—the door shuddered considerably before it gave way, closing with a crashing slam, the momentum of the super speed making it shake and judder.

The Rogue Assassin was trapped. The plan was back in action.

'For God's sake, leave me alone!' the Rogue Assassin bellowed, rising to his feet again and pulling out nunchakus and a mace from the depths of his bag. 'I'll kill you all!'

The other super speeder let out a loud laugh. 'What? You against all of us? Good luck with that!'

'You're gonna need it!' Matthias joined in, jumping out from his hiding spot and igniting his hands. Berwald followed suit, his skin rippling and changing from wood to a metallic sheen, the spanner he had been holding dropping nosily on the ground. 'It's one against…' Matthias did a quick head count of the visible people in the area. '…six of us. Are you sure you can take us all on?'

The Rogue Assassin sent Matthias a heavy scowl. Before he could make a move, however, his feet gave way as Emil, faster as usual, slammed into him. The other super speeder went to stand next to the doppelgänger and held out a hand, which Matthias noticed was made of the same steel as his companion's. A ringing sound came from their slapped hands as they came together in an enthusiastic high-five. Matthias wondered how the super speeder could have a metal hand…

Suddenly, a yell from above caused them all to look up. Matthias' eyes widened as he saw Tino's small form become flailing legs and arms as he backed away from a looming attacker, attired in all black, via a cartwheel and a flip.

'Ah… my reinforcements have arrived,' the Rogue Assassin said appreciatively. ' _Now_ who's outnumbered?'

* * *

 ** _To be continued..._**


	7. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Himaruya Hidekazu. The plot of this AU belongs to myself and theartisserie.**

* * *

 _"_ _Surprises come in all shapes and sizes—some are sweet and nice, some are nasty and frightful. Others have the potential of changing your entire life as you know it."_

 **o**

Matthias couldn't think of a retort in time as all hell broke loose. Men of all shapes and forms entered the field, either wielding knives or guns in their beefy hands. The superhumans broke away from the circle they had created around the Rogue Assassin and immediately engaged with their new opponents. Matthias went head to head with a burly fellow, who had dark tattoos running down his arms and who, unlike his companions, carried a nasty looking machete.

He swung the weapon at Matthias, who narrowly dodged it. Forming a fireball in his palms, he threw it into the air and, using his willpower, made the flames scatter around the man's feet as it fell like a ball towards the ground.

'SLAM DUNK!' he cheered, cackling madly. Oh how he loved the adrenaline rushing through his veins. 'Take that!'

However, once again, a _whoosh_ rang through the air as Emil and the other super speeder ran between the fallen machete-man and Matthias. Matthias, for moment, watched with fascination as the super speeder, as opposed to Emil, went from person to person, displaying a range of powers. He ran up to one man, who was engaged with the doppelgänger, turned into steel and gave him an almighty sucker punch to the stomach. The man doubled over with a grunt, allowing for the doppelgänger to give him a kick in the chin, knocking him out completely.

The super speeder flashed the doppelgänger a grin before running off to where Berwald and Tino were in a double combat with two extremely stocky fellows. They were much bigger than Berwald was, and even more terrifying. The super speeder joined them, his body glowing green, and he sent a blast of light their way almost exactly as Lukas usually did. It caused the pair to separate and yelp in fear. One walked straight into Berwald, who, with his metal skin, was no match for him. The other rolled into Tino who, with some impressive karate skills, rendered the man unconscious in seconds. Tino sent the super speeder a thumbs up before swivelling around to throw a knife at another foe. He fell to the ground with a pained scream for Tino's knife had sunk into the flesh of his thigh.

And that was how it went. The super speeder, seemingly able to use an array of powers, went from person to person. He went from using super speed to energy projection in less than a second, to turning his body into the same steel as the doppelgänger or as Berwald to switching to using firepower like Matthias was. There was no way to describe him other than a superhuman machine.

 _How is he doing that?_ Matthias wondered incredulously as he caused a nasty burn on a skinny man's arm, who ran away in tears from the intensity of his wound. _That is actually insane…_

Soon, he came to stand next to Matthias, chest rising and falling rapidly. His slumped body looked like he was drained of energy, but the expression on his face suggested otherwise. He waved a hand at Matthias to come closer and Matthias, too curious for his own good, did as was requested.

'How's the idea that you and I deal with that arsehole we came here for, huh?' he rasped into Matthias' ear. 'You have that awesome fire power of yours—let's use it to trap the guy.'

He began to roll a plan off his tongue and Matthias' smile grew larger as the words sunk in. It was perfect… The Rogue Assassin was going down.

And there he was, hiding away in a corner of the place, avoiding all the fighting. He looked like a mess: blood poured from his nose and there was a limp in his step. Matthias pointed him out to his partner and he sent him a nod in response. After telling him to go and draw him out, Matthias cracked his knuckles and snuck towards the opposite side of their temporary "arena".

Most of the fighting had dwindled. Only a few brave contenders were left to sample the destruction that were the superhumans. Needless to say, Matthias had to congratulate them on their hard work, although he knew they would have a lot of bruises and scratches to nurse at the end of the night…

'YOU ARE ASKING FOR IT! LEAVE ME ALONE OR SO GOD HELP YOU!'

Matthias let a satisfied smile make its way onto his lips at the Rogue Assassin's roar. For someone who had killed so many people, he certainly seemed to be very scared of a few young adults. _He definitely has a reason to be_ , he thought.

'I swear if you don't leave me alone, you'll never find that wretched girl of yours!' the Rogue Assassin taunted, slowly backing into the centre of the place. At his comment, Matthias' blood turned to ice. Anne… If a single hair on her head had been touched…

'Little bitch deserves all she gets,' the Rogue Assassin growled, holding onto his mace with a death grip; his nunchakus were nowhere to be seen. 'Serves her right for sticking her nose in where it doesn't belong!'

All it took then was for his partner to yell, ' _Now!_ ' before Matthias unleashed every ounce of energy he had left within himself. While his partner shot out fire from his arms, Matthias unpacked the particles and forced them to obey his every command. The embers whirled and twirled, their size reaching the ceiling and wrapping their flickering arms around each other. They formed a spinning tomb of heat and scorching flames around the Rogue Assassin and Matthias' fury at him doubled at the thought of Anne suffering things she probably hadn't even dreamt of.

The inferno grew stronger and his partner stopped shooting fire—instead, he followed Matthias' example and began to control the fiery phenomenon. The Rogue Assassin had broken out into a sweat, turning this way and that to try and figure out an escape route. Matthias grinned. _Ha, you're not escaping this time._

Matthias suddenly lost his momentum for a second. He felt like his head had been repeatedly punched in. Shaking it, he locked eyes with the Rogue Assassin and he felt violently ill. A feeling he had never felt before started rising in his stomach: a desire, an emotion so strong… He felt murderous.

A yelp caught his ears as Matthias made the particles in the air tighten. From the corner of his eye, he saw his partner stare at him in horror. He attempted to do something about Matthias' change in character, but he was deflected as a blast of fire was sent his way. Matthias returned his focus to make the flames close in around the Rogue Assassin, who yelled in alarm at the onslaught of heat.

'Hey now… Do you mind?' he shouted, staring at Matthias with frightened eyes. 'They're getting awfully close, you know? Please… Hey, stop!'

His pleas went deaf to Matthias' ears. Blood pounded in them instead, and a voice in his mind told him to keep going.

 _Kill him! He deserves to die! KILL HIM._

'What are you doing?' a distraught voice cried. 'You're going to kill him! Hey, we need him alive! _Stop!_ '

But Matthias had no intention of stopping. The Rogue Assassin kept screaming and Matthias found that he _relished_ the sound. He was going to make him burn alive as punishment for everything he had done wrong…

 _YES! KILL HIM! KILL THE TRAITOR._

All of a sudden, Matthias' feet flew from underneath him, his body crumpling into a heap, and his head hit the ground. The fiery inferno vanished instantly and the Rogue Assassin's heavy breathing and whimpering filled the otherwise quiet space. But even they went quiet as he was knocked out with the butt of a revolver.

On the ground, Matthias blinked several times, his foggy vision starting to clear. The back of his head throbbed and when he touched it, pain flared at the spot. His fingertips came away wet and warm with blood. Getting to his feet, he looked around the place he was in, taking in the scorch marks on the dirt-strewn floor, which looked almost like a crop circle. He drank in the number of unconscious bodies—or were they actually dead?—and the splatters of red around them. Lifting a hand to run it through his hair, he froze when he saw that it was alight with glowing embers. Letting out a shriek, he shook it out, and was alarmed to see that there were no burns on his fingers. There were no traces of there having been any flames on his skin.

 _What the hell happened?_ _What the actual fuck is going on here?_

He felt a hand rest on his shoulder and he came face-to-face with a shorter male. He studied Matthias curiously from under his navy blue hood and squeezed his shoulder. He moved closer forward, as if he was about to tell Matthias the secrets of the world, and Matthias, for some reason, felt happy to oblige.

'What the hell was that, Matthias?' the man asked him, his tone blunt and straight to the point. 'Is your head screwed on properly or do I need to shake it out a bit for you?'

Matthias, startled, simply gaped at the strange man in confusion. Confusion… He was beyond confused. He was lost.

'I…' He saw a few others staring in bemusement at him and the other man, with eyebrows raised or their arms crossed over their chests. 'I don't know what you're talking about.'

His brow dipped in a deep frown and he shook his head lightly. His eyes then raked over the man's face, with his sharp cheekbones and the flop of pale blond hair sweeping across his forehead. 'Who… who are you?'

The man's eyes widened slightly and his hand dropped from Matthias' shoulder. Matthias' heart dropped at the expression on his face. He looked almost… _betrayed._ Why would he be betrayed? Matthias hardly knew the guy.

Matthias' world began to spin, the full weight of his situation hitting him hard. His muscles and bones protested, and his knees gave way. He felt so drained of energy he could barely think as his head throbbed and the extent of his exhaustion overtook him. Arms caught him as he fell to the ground and his eyes rolled to the back of his head. How had he not noticed he was this tired?

He felt the hood come off his head and his sunglasses being removed. An array of objection came from parts of the room, Matthias couldn't really tell where, but the cool voice he had heard only moments ago said harshly, 'His health is more important than his identity at the moment, don't you think?'

When he received no reply, he returned to Matthias, lightly patting his cheek and turning his head this way and that to get a better look at him.

'Jesus, did you have to knock him that hard?' a boy in a brown and grey hoodie aimed to his right.

'I had to! He was going to kill the guy!' the shortest male cried, his hands working furiously at wringing a piece of black fabric. 'I didn't know I hit him hard enough to give him fucking amnesia!'

'Kill? What guy?' Matthias slurred, his blurry eyes slowly returning to normal. 'I didn't kill no one… Did I?'

'You almost killed him,' the boy in brown told him, pointing behind him with his thumb. 'He's lucky he only got singed and not cooked…'

Following the direction in which he was pointing, Matthias saw a man, with his hands tied up to a metal bar and his head hung. The state of his clothes made Matthias suck in a breath: patches of black soot surrounded various sized holes, which decorated his shirt, pants, even the balaclava he had bunched up around the top of his head. A trail of red running from his hairline down to his neck made Matthias' stomach churn. Did he do that? Why would he do that? He didn't know him! But staring harder at the man made something in his brain click. He knew him…

Then it all came flowing back: the Rogue Assassin; Anne disappearing; fighting against a bunch of men; generating fire with another man and encasing the criminal in a fiery tomb; feeling the need and the desire to burn him alive, to kill him…

'What have I done?' he mouthed, covering the bottom half his face with his shaking palm. 'Oh god, what have I done?'

'You remember?' Tino asked him.

Matthias only nodded, not trusting his voice. Had he really almost killed the guy? He could barely remember doing it all… He felt sick thinking about it.

'That wasn't me…' he said out loud, looking beseechingly at the others. 'I would never… I'd never hurt someone like that, not on purpose. I'm not a murderer… I'm not!'

When he saw doubt on their faces, Matthias turned to the one person he trusted for an honest opinion. 'You don't believe I would do that… Do you, Luke?'

But when Lukas averted his gaze, Matthias' hope vanished and he gave a disappointed nod in acknowledgement. Maybe he was a murderer at heart after all…

'Look guys, sorry to break this up,' Matthias' fire partner interjected, 'but is anyone else finding this really weird? Like... We know you guys, or at least have heard of you in one way or another.'

A stunned silence followed. Berwald's doppelgänger came to stand awkwardly beside his companion, rubbing his neck and keeping his eyes on his shoes. His skin had gone back to its normal state. Matthias blinked and tilted his head in inquiry. They didn't seem familiar… Perhaps they were mistaken?

Lukas was the first to respond. 'And how is it that we know you?'

'Well… I know you from Engineering,' the doppelgänger replied, pointing at Matthias, 'and your dorm room is close to our one, so I usually see you,' he aimed at Berwald, who frowned deeply and scratched his cheek.

'As for me, I've seen you guys around campus,' the other man stated. 'But I've seen you more than the rest, especially around the history building,' he said to Lukas. 'We've had a few conversations in passing. You're doing a Bachelor of Arts, right?'

Matthias saw Lukas' eyes narrow dubiously. He himself felt a bit doubtful. It seemed ludicrous… But was it in anyway true?

'I can see that you don't believe us,' the doppelgänger said. He glanced at his companion. 'Shall we prove it to them, _bruder?_ '

The other simply shrugged in reply before he slipped his cap and sunglasses off. Matthias heard Lukas squeak in surprise when the man's appearance came into view: a head of white hair, something Matthias had never seen before in his life, nor had he seen eyes as red as cherries as the ones that stared back at him. Yet what shocked him more was when the doppelgänger pulled his balaclava from his head and smoothed his blond strands back. His eyes widened as the taller blond sent him a sheepish look.

'Oh shit.'

'You've got to be kidding,' Tino moaned. 'Is our entire freaking university full of superhumans?'

The white haired one merely smiled and waved. ' _Hallo._ '

 _This can't be real… It can't be!_

Matthias let out a strangled sound at the sight of his classmate. ' _Ludwig?_ You—what? _What?_ '

Ludwig smiled. 'And suddenly it all makes sense. Now I know what you were really doing and why you keep falling asleep in Engineering. Explains the scratches and bruises too.'

'Why are you so calm about this?' Matthias shrieked, his hands tearing at his hair. This was the last thing he had expected. First he almost killed someone. Next, another one of his friends was a super? Could this night get anymore mind-blowing? Scratch that—could this _month_ get anymore mind-blowing?

Matthias watched as Ludwig sighed and shook his head. 'I'm not. I'm screaming inside,' he said seriously, eyebrows furrowed together. 'I often wondered… But then I thought myself ridiculous for thinking it.'

'Why are you here?' Matthias asked him. 'What's your business here?'

'Same as yours probably,' Ludwig told him, blinking. 'To save Anne.'

A moment's pause passed between them. It was broken by Ludwig's companion saying quietly, 'Anne is a very lucky person to have the both of you looking out for her.'

Matthias shrugged nonchalantly. 'She's our friend. We can't just leave her hanging.'

'Well, that's nice sentiment and all… but I'm afraid our situation just became a lot more complicated,' Ludwig's companion continued. He looked over to Ludwig, who seemed to read his expression and went over to the tied-up criminal. Matthias only had the chance to exchange a brief look with the others before Ludwig came back, carrying the Rogue Assassin's duffel bag.

'While you were… indisposed, Gilbert and I went through this guy's bag. This bag of his… His weapons weren't the only things in it,' said Ludwig. He dumped the bag in the middle of their circle, allowing for the five of them to peer into the open item.

Tino gasped. ' _Cash?_ That… looks like a lot of money…'

'What does he need with that much money?' Emil asked, his wide eyes glued to the duffel bag. ' _Where_ did he get all that money?'

As soon as Emil's question passed his lips, the answer came to them immediately. The temperature in the room dropped several degrees as the painful realisation of Anne's situation and what was going on slapped them harshly in the faces.

'He's been paid,' Matthias growled out. 'The bastard's been paid for kidnapping Anne.'

Silence overtook them at Matthias' words. Their next question hung over their heads like a dark raincloud, battering them with a storm of endless possibilities as an answer.

 _By whom?_

* * *

 ** _To be continued..._**


	8. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Himaruya Hidekazu. The plot of this AU belongs to myself and theartisserie.**

 **Mature warning: Sexual references/mention of rape.**

* * *

 _"_ _Public displays of affection make people very uncomfortable." — Natasha Romanoff,_ Captain America: The Winter Soldier

 **o**

The next day was a blur to Matthias. He didn't have a lecture that day, so he spent it walking aimlessly around the university after he had finished his morning shift at the bakery, all the while trying his hardest to come to terms with what he and the others had discovered the previous night. He still couldn't quite accept that Ludwig was a super like they were and he also couldn't accept that his actions against their foe were done out of his own will. Something had happened to him… Something out of his control made him do such a thing… And _Ludwig!_ How did that happen?

Feeling himself being shaken, Matthias jolted awake. He realised that he had fallen asleep on the couch and he saw Lukas looking at him in concern. Rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, he sent him a small smile and stretched like a cat.

'Hey.'

'Hey,' Lukas replied. 'You almost burnt the kitchen down. And you're smouldering.'

Matthias paused, his brain taking a moment to process the words. Then his eyes widened and he leapt off the couch—quickly patting his arms to extinguish the embers—and bolted into the kitchen. He had put a batch of apple turnovers in the oven and, checking his phone, he cursed himself for forgetting to put a timer on. But much to his surprise, he saw the tray set upon the bench, the pastries only slightly darkened at the corners.

'I saved them, don't worry,' Lukas said from behind him. 'Next time put the timer on, moron.'

He blinked at his roommate once before he sank into a chair. He buried his face in his hands when he rested his elbows on the kitchen table and he groaned into them. Matthias wasn't going to lie about it, but he felt awful. His head hurt, his stomach churned unpleasantly whenever he thought about the previous night and his heart clenched in horror at the thought of Anne going through the worst.

'I'm sorry,' Matthias mumbled out, his voice muffled by his palms. He hated feeling like this. He wanted nothing more than to break down and cry.

'For what?'

Matthias sighed, lifted his head from his hands and smiled. 'Nothing, I'm being silly. How was your date?'

He winced when the words left his lips. Given his feelings for the past year or so, Matthias wasn't too keen on Lukas being in a relationship with someone who wasn't him. He knew he was being selfish and needy, but he couldn't help it. He had spent more nights thinking about what it would be like to have Lukas as a boyfriend, how his skin would feel against his… what his mouth would taste like…

Matthias slapped himself mentally. _Enough. He doesn't feel that way about you,_ he scolded himself. _He's probably not even into guys! All you do is annoy him anyway…_

At Matthias' question Lukas let out a quiet laugh, although it was more of a shake of his shoulders. 'I forgot… I don't have to be secretive around you anymore.'

When Matthias raised his eyebrow in confusion, Lukas leant against the edge of the countertop and crossed his arms over his chest.

'I never had a date,' he said simply as an explanation. 'I never had any dates, come to that. It was just an excuse to get out of the place so I could go and do my catching-the-bad-guys business without being too suspicious.'

When Lukas' words fully sunk in, Matthias felt his heart soar. _Maybe I'm in with a chance!_

'Is that so?' was what he said out loud. 'Pretty ingenious that. But if you weren't out catching bad guys, what were you doing today?'

Lukas shrugged. 'Went for a walk, did some writing in the park…' He frowned as he tried to remember. 'Some other things… Just relaxed, really.'

Matthias nodded in acknowledgement and set his gaze on his hands. The gnawing feeling in his stomach was still there and overwhelming dread seized his heart like a clenching hand. Unable to hold back anymore, he slammed his head on the table and let out a suppressed scream.

He could sense Lukas looking at him curiously and he felt him place a tentative hand on his shoulder.

'Have you been out today?' he asked softly.

'All day. I got back almost an hour ago.'

Lukas paused. 'Right, get your shoes on. We're going for a walk.'

Matthias lifted his head from the table and gaped at his roommate. _Did he hear a single word I just said?_ Lukas looked at him and added, 'You were on your own. Maybe you need some company… and someone to talk to.'

He knew not to argue with Lukas, and a small smile made his way onto his lips at the sincerity of his actions. Maybe talking things out with his best friend would make him feel better. So, following Lukas into the living room, Matthias searched for his shoes, finding them by the door. He grabbed his hoodie and scarf that were hanging by the door, scooped the keys from the bowl and turned to see Lukas struggling to put his arm into his sleeve. Putting the keys into his pocket, Matthias grabbed the rebelling sleeve and waited for Lukas to put his arm in before letting go.

'Thanks. Shall we?'

With that, they left their dormitory and ventured towards the stairs. It was when they were walking down them that Lukas spoke.

'So what's eating you?'

Matthias glanced at his friend and sighed. Might as well be honest.

'Everything.'

When all Lukas did was raise an eyebrow, Matthias continued.

'I feel like shit, to be honest with you. What happened last night has been bugging me all day.'

'You mean the whole you-almost-killing-the-Rogue-Assassin thing?' Lukas asked him, a perplexed expression on his face.

Scowling as a response, he waited as Lukas opened the entry door to the dormitory building. They winced when cold wind slapped them in their faces and they realised how dark it had gotten. Matthias wrapped his scarf tighter around his neck and shoved his hands in his pockets. They walked in silence for a couple of moments before Matthias spoke again.

'You don't honestly think I did what I did of my own accord, Luke?' he asked Lukas. 'Because I would _never—_ '

'I don't truly think it,' Lukas interrupted, gazing at Matthias seriously. 'But something happened to you in there, Matt, and to be honest… I'm scared to know why or how that was.'

Matthias laughed humourlessly. 'Yeah… something happened, alright… But at least I know that I have you on my side.'

'Of course I'm on your side. I'm your friend.'

Before he could express his gratitude, Matthias paused when he heard a sound coming from the depths of a nearby alleyway. Stopping in his tracks, he heard Lukas ask him what the matter was, to which he held up his hand and pointed silently to the alleyway. Looking around them, Matthias beckoned Lukas to come closer.

'Go to the right wall and wait for my signal,' he told him once he had done so. 'Act normal.'

Lukas glanced at him blankly before nodding once and creeping towards the wall Matthias had pointed out. Matthias made his own way over to the other side of the alleyway opening and pressed himself flat against it. From his position, he could hear a series of whimpers and pained cries and cruel laughter from at least two people. Exchanging a brief glance with Lukas, he held up a finger for him to wait before peeking around the corner.

In the near distance, Matthias noted three large men towering over a cowering woman. Her top lay open and Matthias felt bad when his eyes immediately landed on her heaving breasts. One of the men was holding a knife against her neck, his mouth close to her ear. Another was in the process of pulling down her bra and the third was dipping his hand beneath the confines of her jeans…

Matthias could see the glistening tears trailing down her cheeks and could hear her moans of distress. His heart slammed in his chest when he realised who she looked like.

His blood boiled at what he was seeing and he looked around his feet for something to throw. Seeing a small rock, he picked it up, placed a finger to his lips at Lukas and looked around the corner again. He spotted a metal bin nearby and, with a strong flick of his wrist, threw the rock towards it. It hit the object with a loud _clang_ that echoed down the alleyway.

'Who's there?' was the instant response after a couple of yelps. 'Show yourself!'

Matthias sent Lukas a thumbs up and reached into his pocket for his sunglasses. He put them on and cracked his shoulders. Whatever this situation would bring, he was ready.

'Let's get the fuck out of here,' one of the men said. 'I'll take the girl.'

'Yeah, you're coming with us, bitch,' another told the woman after she had let out a defensive groan. 'We ain't finished with you yet.'

Matthias heard the men laugh heartlessly at the woman and then heard their footsteps moving down towards the end of the alleyway. Jerking his head to the side to Lukas, he noted the steely shine Lukas' eyes had and knew that everything was going to be alright and that Lukas trusted him.

So they lifted their hoods and ventured down the pathway.

 **.**

Lukas' mind raced as he followed Matthias' form down the path.

Everything he had said to him had made him confused. There were a number of possibilities that could have been the reason for Matthias' abrupt change in demeanour, all of which were sending Lukas' brain into overdrive. Something wasn't right about the whole situation, and Lukas knew, to a degree, that Matthias had definitely not been himself that night.

When they had reached the end of the alleyway, they noticed that it opened up onto a main road. Lukas exchanged a brief, confused look with Matthias before looking down both ends of the road. The assailants and their victim were nowhere to be seen, nor could Matthias or Lukas hear anything that could have indicated their whereabouts.

'Where did they go—?'

Lukas' breath caught in his throat when his nose got very close to Matthias' jaw as he leant forward to look down the right end of the road. The alleyway wasn't a wide one and, from the close proximity, he could see the lines of Matthias' throat and the strong, prominent angle of his jawline. The little light they had from a nearby streetlamp illuminated the shadows on Matthias' face, the dark contours bringing out the angles of his features and making his eyes gleam behind his sunglasses as they scanned the empty road. Lukas was suddenly able to pinpoint the freckles that dotted his cheekbones and that disappeared into the depths of his hood where the light couldn't reach them.

'Shit, there's someone coming up the street!' Matthias hissed as he looked to his right, giving Lukas more of a view of his neck. 'Distraction, distraction… we gotta act normal!'

As he spoke, Lukas found himself mesmerised by the way his lips moved, and he wondered what would happen if he just tilted his head towards him and leant up...

He backtracked at that thought. _Lukas, what the actual fuck is wrong with you?_ _This is Matthias._ Matthias. _Your best friend since primary school. You should not be thinking of him this way… right?_

The answer to his question came sooner than he thought. Matthias, who had been talking to him the whole time, paused when he realised that Lukas wasn't paying attention. Lukas caught him staring intensely at him, and he saw those blue eyes spark with an idea.

'I know what we can do, but you have to trust me,' Matthias said to him. 'You do trust me, right?'

After Lukas sent him a look, Matthias dropped his hood, moved his sunglasses into his hair and bent down to press his lips to Lukas'.

Lukas' eyes widened to the size of saucers immediately at the action and his body froze. He forgot how to breathe, his hands didn't know where to go and his heart slammed away at his ribs as Matthias' palms settled on his hips. His mouth burned and he felt dizzy, almost drunk, even more so when Matthias slightly parted his lips with his own. Lukas' knees were weak, his legs were shaking and his eyes slowly fluttered shut.

He would have been lying if he said that he didn't like what was happening. Lukas had, in fact, been feeling more for Matthias lately than he had ever done. He never knew what to label it because he had never felt it before, but now… with his mouth being taken by Matthias', he knew just what to label it as.

Being so wrapped around the kiss, Lukas didn't hear the sound of disgust and the receding footsteps of the intruder, nor did he start to respond to the barter until, much to his dissatisfaction, Matthias pulled away. Their breaths came out in white clouds, twirling and merging together. Matthias' mouth curved at the corners and his eyes settled beyond Lukas' line of sight.

'Is he gone?' he asked, glancing over Lukas' shoulder.

It took Lukas a short moment to realise what had happened. When it hit him, he scowled heavily and did not delay the hard punch aimed towards Matthias' gut. Doubling over in pain, he let out a grunt when Lukas' fist hit home, and he looked at him in confusion.

'Pull a stunt like that again and I will not hesitate to castrate you, do you understand?' was all Lukas aimed at him for an explanation before storming off down back the way they came.

He felt used, hurt and utterly disappointed. Despite the butterflies that made his stomach flip and the tingling sensation on his lips, Lukas wanted nothing more than to forget that the kiss ever happened. _As if Matthias likes you that way,_ he told himself. _He'd never like someone like you—a loner, a loser, the "best friend". He's more interested in people_ other _than you. How long have you been friends for? He's had all that time to be interested in you and not once has he been!_

But as his fingers brushed his bottom lip, he couldn't help but wish that it had been genuine, that Matthias did like him that way and that perhaps… he could kiss him again and again.

'Luke—hey, Luke!'

Lukas ignored him and continued to walk, his shoes making a lot more noise than they should have. But Lukas was so upset that he didn't care.

'Hey, look, I'm sorry,' Matthias said, his breath short as he tried to keep up with Lukas. 'It was the first thing that came to mind—and it's not like it meant anything!'

Ignoring the cool slice of pain that slivered his heart at Matthias' comment, Lukas turned around and glared at his friend, who had put his hood back up and his sunglasses on his nose. 'It's fine. Just don't do it again, okay?'

Matthias sighed. 'I really am sorry. And I won't… I promise.'

'Just forget it, okay? Can we move on? We have a person to save,' Lukas muttered, hugging himself when a gust of chilly wind came by.

He was anything but okay with what happened but he wasn't about to tell Matthias that. Yet, all his thoughts were interrupted when someone crashed into him, enough to send him flying. Lukas fell back with a grunt and his head hit the pavement hard. His vision swam before him, black spots dancing in front of him. He vaguely made out retreating footsteps and the outline of Matthias' form come closer to him. When he did, he reeled backwards with a quiet hiss.

'Fuck off.' Lukas groggily got to his feet and violently shook his head. 'Don't touch me.'

He didn't have to look at Matthias to know what expression he had on his face. Lukas didn't want to see it for himself, not this time, because whenever Matthias got sad or was hurt, it was like looking at a kicked puppy or some poor tiny animal in need of love and affection. But Lukas was so angry at him and at himself that he merely pushed past him in the direction of the runaway criminals who had knocked him over.

 **.**

Watching Lukas move away from him, Matthias resisted the urge to scream. His heart clenched at Lukas' harsh rejection of his help and his mind swam with reprimands at himself.

Yet, Matthias would have pondered more on the issue if his mouth didn't tingle and if his cheeks weren't blooming red. Cupping the bottom half of his face, he tried to fight the growing smile at the thought of having Lukas' lips on his own and having the sweet taste still residing on them.

He had kissed Lukas. He had kissed Lukas and he had loved it. And he had sworn that he had started to kiss him back before Matthias had pulled away. But his smile fell when the bitter reality set in. Lukas' reaction and punch to his stomach had been unexpected and Matthias' hope of ever being with him and the possibility of Lukas having the same feelings for him shattered when the hit landed.

 _Idiot, idiot, idiot! You kissed him! Are you nuts? And "it doesn't mean anything"? That's the best you can come up with? You'll be lucky if he ever speaks to you again, you fucking moron!_

Breaking into a run to catch up with Lukas and his attacker, Matthias didn't make more than four or five steps before something smacked him at the back of his head. He fell forwards but regained his balance at the last second. He blinked tears out of his eyes and pain throbbed where he had gotten hit.

'Fuck bitch, what the fuck did you do that for?' a voice came from behind him. 'Now he'll kill us!'

Matthias swivelled around and glared heatedly through his sunglasses. A snarl was on his face as his eyes landed on two of the three hooligans and he felt his hand grow warm as flames licked up his skin. The attackers eyes widened behind their masks when they landed on the fire.

'Fuck bitch, he's a super! _Run!_ ' one of them shouted, turning on his heel and sprinting down the alleyway.

His companion wasted no time in following him, only to shriek when Matthias threw a fireball at him. It hit him on his leg and he fell down with a cry. His hands clutched at his leg as his companion, who had backtracked, patted at the embers that curled around the torn fabric. Matthias pulled him to his feet, leaving his friend whimpering on the ground, and hoisted him to the tips of his toes.

'Where is she?' he growled at him. ' _Where is she?'_

His voice shook, his hands trembled, but his mind was teeming with resolve. He was going to find this woman—this woman who looked so much like Anne and like _Myra_ —and bring her to safety. But when the man merely laughed at him, Matthias knocked him out with a powerful punch. His body crumpled to the ground when Matthias let go, and his anger was then directed to the injured man.

'I don't know!' he cried out, the hand that wasn't holding his leg up in a surrender. 'Sam took her by himself and we split up!'

Matthias paused, then, with another punch, hit the injured man and watched as he slumped against the stone wall. Breathing heavily through his nose, Matthias scanned the area around him and grinned when he saw an abandoned coil of rope. Grabbing it, he positioned the two men so they were back-to-back and began wrapping the rope around their bodies. When he had done so and tightened the knot, he heard footsteps coming up behind him. Turning around swiftly, he came face-to-face to Lukas. He had a cut under his left eye and a bruise forming on his jaw.

'Let's get out of here,' was all Lukas said to him. 'I've dealt with the other guy.'

'What about the woman?'

Lukas looked at Matthias carefully. 'She's fine. I told her to call the police.'

With that, Lukas pushed past Matthias once again and yanked down his hood. Matthias, doing the same, chucked his sunglasses into his pocket and hurried after his friend. Judging by his movement, Lukas was still very much upset by what Matthias had done. Matthias hated it whenever he made Lukas angry, and at that moment in time, he wanted nothing more than for things to return to normal.

He called Lukas' name over and over again, desperate for a response. Lukas merely ignored him until they were about a few metres away from the dormitory building.

'What do you want from me?' he growled, and Matthias flinched at his tone.

'Lukas, _please_ ,' Matthias pleaded. 'I really am so sorry… If I could take it back I would! Please… I don't want this to ruin us.'

Matthias watched as Lukas' eyes widened slightly. Then he let out a short breath and muttered, 'Whatever. But do it again and I _will_ hurt you.'

Matthias raised his palms in surrender, despite knowing that nothing was technically okay. But he let it go and watched as Lukas rubbed the bridge of his nose. A moment of silence fell between the pair and he scolded himself mentally for going along with the idea of kissing Lukas. _Of course he'd hate you for it! Jerk, now things are never going to be the same between you again._

He was pulled away from his internal chastising when Lukas cleared his throat.

'So…' he began. 'What happens now? What are we going to do about Anne?'

Frowning, Matthias racked his brain for the answer. There wasn't really anything he could do at the moment, but he knew that there was only one thing he really wanted to do.

'We've got to save her. We've got to stop the people who are involved with Anne's kidnapping.'

Lukas let out a sigh. 'How do you suggest we do that? We know nothing!'

Matthias thought deeply for a moment. Lukas was right, of course. They didn't know anything. But as a thought came to him, Matthias realised that they knew someone who did.

'We talk to Ludwig and Gilbert,' Matthias said decisively to Lukas. 'They knew where the Rogue Assassin was. They had to get the information from somewhere. They must know _something_ …'

Lukas looked at Matthias long and hard, then said, 'You're right. But we'll talk to them tomorrow, it's late now.'

Nodding in agreement, Matthias dug his freezing hands into his pockets and followed Lukas as he walked in the direction of the university. Someone out there, if not solely Ludwig and his brother, knew what was really going on… and Matthias vowed that he would do whatever it took to find out exactly who that was.

* * *

 ** _To be continued..._**


	9. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Himaruya Hidekazu. The plot of this AU belongs to myself and theartisserie.**

* * *

 _"_ _Dreams are things to be indulged in and interpreted… yet, they are also things to be feared."_

 **o**

His eyes glowed amber as they stared blankly towards the group surrounding him. His brain pounded against his skull and his vision swam with colours and sparks of light. Images rushed rapidly through his mind, playing out scenes too gruesome for him to say out loud. There were people he knew being slaughtered, their bodies lying in pools of blood. There were people he knew doing things against their own wills, being driven to the point of madness. There were also people he knew and loved constantly fighting, fighting and fighting and _losing_ more often than not.

A gasp was torn from his throat, the sound causing the people gathered to flinch. His hands gripped the arms of the chair he was sitting in and a soft whimper passed his lips. He hated it when this happened, utterly loathed the helpless feeling that coursed through him. It always happened when he least expected it, but thankfully there was always someone there with him to help him through it.

Suddenly, an image so foul crossed his mind that a shudder racked his spine. He let out a cry as the person in the image beckoned him to come closer, their eyes bottomless pits and their hands thin as paper. The skin of their fingers cracked and peeled as they bent in a "come hither" motion and the sight made him want to throw up.

'Don't make me go back there… Please!' he shouted weakly at them. This wasn't the first time he had seen the vision, and its increasing frequency scared him.

He heard the people around him saying his name as his breath shortened and his shining eyes widened. The muscles in his body tightened and his lungs stopped heaving in air as he lurched forward in his seat. A series of surprised yells barely made it to his ears as the roaring rush of blood in his eardrums overpowered them.

Then everything fell silent. The only thing he heard was his own raspy breathing and a low hum in his ears. He raised his head to gaze at the congregated mass of people, his muscles still tense and his heart hammering against his ribs. His voice took a deep tone when he spoke, one very different to his normal one. It was older, harsher and sounded as if it held the weight of knowledge belonging to a thousand worlds.

' _Feliciano sees… He knows… He sees the end for you._ ' He drew in a shaky breath. ' _He doesn't lie… Your wildest dreams will be shattered and unquenched… You will be destroyed in your endeavours! Nothing yet everything will stand in your way…_ '

The force left him. His body slumped against the chair, being simply drained of all the energy he had. He gave himself a few moments to regain his breath before he opened his eyes and took in the astonished expressions of the others. He smiled inwardly at their surprise, even more so when he took in his leader's troubled guise.

Little did they know that the revolution against them had already begun, and he was determined not to let them know it.

 **.**

His face right up to the mirror, Lukas tried not to get antiseptic into his eye as he dabbed a cotton ball on the cut underneath it. When he had cornered his attacker in the alleyway, he had received a punch to the face and, unfortunately, the man had been wearing a ring. The sting made him wince and he chucked the stained cotton ball into the sink with a scowl. In truthfulness, the cut was only a small one and not at all deep, and Lukas' feeling of irritation was not aimed at it. No…

It was aimed at Matthias.

When they had arrived back at their dormitory, Lukas had made a beeline straight to the bathroom to sort his injury out. He had tried his hardest to stop himself staring at Matthias on the way back and had kept his answers short and to the point. But it wasn't as if he hated Matthias—on the contrary, he loved him very much. Yet the fact that their kiss "didn't mean anything" destroyed Lukas' idea of ever being romantically involved with his childhood friend.

Not long after Lukas had started treating his wound, Matthias had poked his head in, whispered a quiet 'Goodnight,' and smiled sadly before leaving. Unlocking the screen of his phone, Lukas looked at the time and realised that it had been more than half an hour since Matthias had retired for the evening.

Gaping at his reflection, Lukas took in the pink skin from where, it seemed, he had been absentmindedly pressing the cotton ball a little harder than he should have for the past half hour. A thin layer of dried blood that he hadn't cleaned off sat in the middle of his cheek, almost like a freshly healed scar. Dark bags hung deep under his eyes and he looked as if he hadn't gotten a wink of sleep for several nights.

Lukas hung his head and gripped the edge of the sink.

 _What am I doing? What is the matter with me?_

Picking out the cotton ball from the sink and chucking it into the bin by the door, he turned on the tap and vigorously washed his hands. He quickly rubbed off the dry blood from his face, avoiding washing off the antiseptic he had applied. Then, drying his hands and cheek, Lukas left the bathroom and went in the direction of the kitchen, passing Matthias' room as he did so. He gave it a fleeting glance, but it was enough for his mind to return to the moment they had shared in the alleyway.

He let out a frustrated sigh and leant against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest. He glared at Matthias' bedroom door, but his expression softened when his lips prickled with the memory of Matthias' mouth being pressed upon them. The silence of the room allowed his brain to wander, and he imagined he was kissing Matthias again. He could feel the warmth seeping through his jeans where Matthias' palms were sitting on his hips, could feel the softness of his lips brushing against his, could taste the sweetness of Matthias' mouth on his tongue and could feel his breath ghosting his flesh. But that image crumbled when Matthias' words boomed in his mind, loud as thunder.

 _'_ _It's not like it meant anything!'_

Lukas grabbed his hair in vexation and tried his hardest to hold in the scream he wanted to let out. It came out as a strangled squeak and, in one last attempt to erase the memory from his mind, he escaped to the kitchen. He glowered at Matthias' door one last time along the way.

But even in the kitchen Lukas couldn't run away from Matthias' presence. He froze when his eyes landed on a container filled with the apple turnovers he had saved earlier. The tray had been washed and put out to dry and it was when his eyes went back to the container that he noticed a folded piece of paper sitting on the lid. Curious to see what it said, Lukas picked it up, unfolded it and immediately noticed Matthias' handwriting.

 _This is far from a peace offering because I know I need to do more than give you food to earn your forgiveness but… I always did value your opinion, and do even more so now. Matt xx_

Carefully placing the note next to the container, Lukas stared at the sweets. A quirk of a grin graced his lips as he remembered the first time Matthias had made them…

.

 _Digging in his pocket for the spare key and pushing it into the lock once he had pulled it out, Lukas let himself into Matthias' house. He had just come from a dreary afternoon class, and he wanted nothing more than to lie down and scream into a pillow about how boring it had been. Year Eleven sucked._

 _But he supposed hanging out with Matthias would be better than screaming into a pillow._

 _He took off his shoes and placed them, his bag and folder by the door and popped his head in the living room, where he saw Matthias' parents. Lukas greeted them briefly before being told that Matthias was in the kitchen. Heading towards it, he wondered why Matthias was there, but then he remembered the meeting they had had earlier that day._

 _The student council, which both of them were a part of, were putting on a charity fundraiser the next day and one of the components was a bake sale at both recess and lunchtime. Because Matthias was famous for his baking skills, he had been called upon by the council to make some of his specialities for the event._

 _If Lukas had a weakness, it was Matthias' baking._

 _Entering the kitchen, his eyes widened in shock. Every surface was covered in plates of sweets, dirty and clean dishes, bags of flour, cartons of eggs and other things that Lukas didn't know where to begin naming. He saw Matthias—in his school uniform of all things—holding a mixing bowl and a wooden spoon. He tried to hold in a snort when he saw that Matthias was sporting a bright pink headband in his hair, but failed and managed to catch his attention._

 _'_ _Hey!' he greeted with a grin. 'How was class?' Matthias laughed when all he got was a scowl as an answer, before nudging Lukas' arm and smiling sincerely. 'Eh, don't worry about it. You'll get through it.'_

 _Nodding, Lukas looked around the kitchen once more. 'Are you trying to feed a school or a small army?'_

 _Matthias gazed at him seriously. 'What's the difference?'_

 _Shaking his head, Lukas grinned and reached for one of the chocolate biscuits Matthias had lain out. His hand was slapped as Matthias tutted, 'No! I need your tongue to be untainted! I've got something new for you to try!'_

 _Raising an eyebrow, Lukas sunk into a chair at the cramped table of sweets. There were biscuits, cookies, cupcakes and shortbread. Lukas shook his head in astonishment._

 _'_ _You know, normal people usually buy these things,' Lukas told him._

 _Matthias laughed. 'Since when am I "normal people"? Besides, half the things bought in the shops are stale by the time they get sold. And hey, if not all of these get sold,_ we _get to eat the leftovers!'_

 _As Lukas chuckled, the timer on the oven went off and Matthias rushed to grab a dry tea towel, abandoning the mixture he was working with._

 _'_ _Are you trying to make me fat, Matt?' Lukas joked, his eyes landing on the steaming pastries Matthias had taken out of the oven._

 _Setting the hot tray on the stove top, Matthias guffawed. 'Damn, you saw right through my plan!'_

 _Lukas couldn't fight the grin that formed on his face and he watched as Matthias got a pair of tongs and started piling the pastries onto yet another plastic plate. The smell coming from the oven was incredible and Lukas found himself silently pining to sink his teeth into this new creation. Then, much to his delight, Matthias set the plate next to the plate of chocolate biscuits Lukas had tried to steal one from earlier._

 _'_ Voilà _, apple turnovers! Come on… try one,' Matthias coaxed. 'Tell me what you think!'_

 _He sat across from Lukas with his head in his palms, an excited expression on his face. Unable to resist the good vibe oozing from his friend, Lukas smiled and broke off a piece of the turnover. It was still warm in his hand, and he sent Matthias an impressed look before popping the piece of food into his mouth. Chewing softly, flavours burst in his mouth and he couldn't describe it as anything but…_

 **.**

Succulent. Flavoursome. Warm. Delicious.

He didn't notice he had finished an entire turnover until his hand was empty and he was licking the sugar off his fingers. Perhaps it wasn't the best thing to eat before going to bed, but Lukas was hungry and Matthias' baking was too good to pass up. It was just as good as the first ones he had made, if not slightly better, and Lukas' mind burned with nostalgia.

 _Those were the good old days…_

Gazing at the clock on the wall, Lukas sighed when it struck eleven o'clock. Perhaps it was high time he went to bed, but now that he had eaten the turnover, he needed to brush his teeth. So Lukas went back towards the bathroom, keen to ignore the incriminating bedroom of his roommate.

But as he walked past Matthias' room, he paused when he heard something coming from it. Puzzled, Lukas pressed his ear against the door, only to hear a series of whimpers and pained moans mixed in with the sound of violent tossing and turning. Lukas didn't hesitate to quietly enter his friend's room and was startled to see just how distressed Matthias was.

He had guessed that when Matthias had told him he hadn't been sleeping well that it was due to bad dreams, but to see him like this made Lukas' heart clench in his chest.

The light from their living room made it possible to see Matthias curled up into a ball, his hands under his chin and gripping his pillow tightly. His face was contorted in sorrow and despair, and his lips moved as fearful sounds bubbled past them. A sweat had broken out on his forehead and Lukas was alarmed to see tears trickling over the bridge of his nose and onto his pillow.

It was when he heard his name come out in a croaked whisper that Lukas moved towards Matthias. Standing right next to his bed, Lukas could hear him muttering, 'No… no, please no,' under his breath repeatedly. His breathing was shallow and frenzied, and a choked sob made Lukas spring into action.

He placed a hand on Matthias' trembling shoulder and squeezed it gently. Matthias calmed down slightly and curled even further in towards himself. Lukas had never seen him so vulnerable and the overwhelming desire to help him ousted all the anger and frustration he previously had towards him. Sitting down on the edge of the bed, Lukas delicately cupped Matthias' cheek in his hand, his thumb stroking it softly. He let out quiet shushing sounds and ran his fingers through the blond mess on Matthias' head.

It took several minutes for Matthias to calm down entirely. His breathing eventually slowed, his hold on his pillow relaxed and the tension in his shoulders loosened. Lukas continued to stroke his hair and cheek, and rub his shoulder. He wiped the tears from Matthias' nose and he was leaning in to kiss his forehead when he froze.

 _No. What are you doing? That's the last thing he'd want you to do!_

He backtracked and buried his head in his hands. _Damn this stupid Dane,_ he thought. _Messing with my feelings like this…_

Glancing at Matthias' sleeping face, Lukas wondered what he had been dreaming about in order for him to be so distraught. Remembering all the times he had woken up from a nightmare, Lukas realised that Matthias had always been there to calm him down and to reassure him that everything was going to be okay.

He half wished Matthias was awake so he could console him, so he could return the favour…

 **.**

 _Lukas woke up screaming._

 _He grappled with the sheets and grasped his hair as the yell was torn from his throat. His heart was in his mouth and his lungs stopped breathing in air when he realised where he was. He wasn't in his room. This wasn't his bed…_

 _He started to panic. Where was his mother? Where was he? Whose room was this? Why was he here?_

 _Wrestling with the sheets once again, Lukas found himself on the floor as he rolled off. Another scream left him when the door to the room he was in burst open and suddenly every bad thing that had happened in his dream came rushing back. He struggled to escape the cocoon he had unintentionally made for himself and gasped when he felt something touch his shoulder._

 _'_ _NO!'_

 _'_ _Hey, shh, shh… It's me, it's Matt! You're dreaming!'_

 _Lukas paused and looked up to see his friend gazing at him in concern. His hand was on Lukas' shoulder and his eyes scanned Lukas' fearful façade. Calming down slightly, the events of the past couple of days came rushing back to his befuddled brain and he suddenly had the overwhelming urge to cry._

 _'_ _I'm sorry…'_

 _He heard Matthias sigh and saw him turn around to speak to his parents, who had entered the room at the same time as Matthias. All he heard was a babbling of Danish—which usually he would understand but couldn't at the moment because he was in a world of his own—before Matthias sat down next to him and wrapped an arm around his shoulders. His parents left the room and shut the door with a soft_ click.

 _'_ _You've got nothing to apologise for,' he told Lukas, squeezing his arm softly. 'Do you want to talk about it?'_

 _Lukas rapidly shook his head and hugged himself tightly. The blanket still enveloped his form to the point where he found it hard to move. All sorts of emotions bubbled up inside his chest and his throat constricted as he tried to fight the sobs that wanted to escape._

You're thirteen—get a grip!

 _But as the tears spilled over, Lukas' body shook as he whispered to Matthias, 'I want to go home. I miss my mum.'_

 _That was all it took for Lukas to start crying. He buried his head into Matthias' shoulder, not caring if his friend saw him crying. The reaction was instantaneous for Matthias brought Lukas closer to him and mumbled soothing words in his ear._

 _'_ _I know it's hard…' he began, holding Lukas close as he wept. 'I can't begin to imagine the hell you've been through. But everything is going to be okay now. Your mum will be okay—she'll get through this.'_

 _He cupped Lukas' face in his hands, forcing him to look at him. Lukas saw determination swirling in Matthias' eyes and he suddenly felt at ease. He was right, of course. Everything was going to be okay. He hurriedly wiped his eyes of tears and sniffled._

 _Matthias then silently began to unravel the nest Lukas had made with his thrashing around. Together they managed to free Lukas from the bed sheet and he was able to get himself back into his bed. Yet, the contents of his nightmare came flooding back and he felt the crushing sensation of not wanting to be alone. So he hurriedly grabbed Matthias' hand to prevent him from leaving._

 _'_ _What's wrong?' Matthias asked him._

 _Lukas' cheeks grew warm. He wanted to ask Matthias to stay with him, but that involved him getting into his bed and sharing it._

 _'_ _Stay with me… please,' he said so quietly he thought Matthias must not have heard him._

 _But hear him he did for he smiled gently and nodded. He gestured for Lukas to move over, which he did immediately, and took the blanket from the floor and draped it over Lukas and the bed. He hopped in and buried himself under it afterwards, grabbing Lukas' hand in the process._

 _'_ _I'm here,' he muttered. 'I'll always be here.'_

 **.**

Lukas had resumed playing with Matthias' hair as he had mused. Matthias had been a part of his life for _years_ , and they had seen and been through a number of things together. Their relationship was a unique one, and all of a sudden, his kiss with Matthias wasn't as scandalous as he made it out to be. He was still pissed that Matthias had taken advantage of him like that, but at least he knew what it was like to kiss him.

Lukas then decided that he didn't care. He didn't care if his love for Matthias was one-sided in the romantic sense. As long as the stupid man was in his life and still considered him a friend, that was all he cared about. So he pressed a soft kiss to Matthias' forehead and covered his shoulders with his blanket. Then he left the room without looking back, and shut the door quietly.

But if he had looked back, Lukas would have seen a sleepy smile bloom on Matthias' face.

* * *

 ** _To be continued..._**


	10. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Himaruya Hidekazu. The plot of this AU belongs to myself and theartisserie.**

* * *

 _"_ _Danger for criminals is getting caught. Danger for heroes is getting killed before their time. But danger is an inevitable clause of someone's life, but what makes it dangerous…_

 _"…_ _is you never know when it's coming for you."_

 **o**

Downing his brandy in a single gulp, he came back up gasping. The liquid caused his throat to burn and his stomach to churn. He hated brandy, but it seemed to be the only thing that kept him going these days—especially when those days were filled with tasks meant to please his new boss whom he didn't particularly like.

The new boss was perhaps one of the most powerful men in the area, much more powerful than he was. He had influence and strategy, something apparently _he_ , a mere youngster, didn't have. But how could he say no to his idea? It was one that could make them all _rich_. But his arrogance and pompous manner were enough to make his skin crawl with irritation.

But it seemed his irritated demeanour was about to evolve into pure frustration.

'Sir?'

At the voice, he turned his gaze from the window to land it on the newcomer. It was one of his most loyal henchmen, and from his expression, he didn't appear to be too happy.

'What is it, Fabio?' he said to him in his native tongue. 'You look troubled.'

'Well, sir,' Fabio started, speaking in the same language, 'I just came back from our "friend" and he sends us many messages.'

Raising an eyebrow at the cold tone, he gestured to Fabio to continue.

'Well sir… he's told me to tell you that we better not screw this up, otherwise there will be drawing of blood.'

'He said that?' he asked Fabio in surprise.

'In so many words,' Fabio replied. 'And he also told me to tell you—just to make things crystal clear—that this is the most important moment in our operation and that if we fuck up, Mister Abel will not be happy that his money was spent on a failure.'

At the mention of Abel, he scowled heavily at Fabio and poured himself another brandy. If there was anyone that annoyed him more than his new boss, it was Abel. The man was a self-absorbed dickhead who was obsessed with saving money rather than spending it. Yet when he did spend it, it was on drugs and alcohol rather than essentials. Abel's logic made no sense to him, and his ways annoyed him to no end. So to hear that Abel would be pissed if his precious money was lost on a just cause made his blood boil.

'Abel can go and sit in a hole for all I care,' was what he said to Fabio before downing his drink. 'And our dear boss doesn't need to worry. This operation will be successful. What does he take us for, amateurs? Please, just because I'm young doesn't mean I don't know how to keep things in order.'

'I'm well aware of that, sir,' Fabio told him, a small smile on his bearded face. 'But he was adamant for me to tell you.'

'Hm, yeah, I'm sure he was…' he grumbled. He froze when a thought came to mind. 'It's because of Thomas, isn't it?'

When Fabio looked at him in confusion, he elaborated with, 'It's because of Thomas and what he did up at North Shore that our dear boss is treating us like this, isn't it?'

Fabio looked uncomfortable. He could make out the white patches hiding underneath Fabio's dress shirt and the burns on his arm he had obtained from the battle he had been a part of. When he had heard that his entire mafia had gone to North Shore with Thomas, the last thing he had expected was for them to be neck-deep in conflict.

'Sir, I promise you none of us knew what he was up to—'

'I don't blame any of you except for Thomas,' he interrupted, and he saw Fabio visibly relax. 'He shouldn't have been up there in the first place… although I would like to know _why_ those supers were there…'

His expression grew dark and he stared at Fabio. 'I would also like to know how Thomas managed to find out about our new alliance with our new boss. No one except you and I are supposed to know that because… if I recall correctly… _I_ was the one who told you not to tell anyone about it. So how could Thomas know… unless…'

He waited to see how Fabio would react, and much to his delight he watched as the colour drained out of his face.

'S-Sir, I… I swear I never breathed a word!' Fabio told him, his voice desperate. 'He came up to me shortly before we went to North Shore and told me he had overheard us discussing it last week! As God is my witness, I never said _anything_ —'

'I know, Fabio,' he said to him, his tone strangely kind. 'I was just testing you. But that nevertheless leaves us with a problem. He has been caught and he could blab to the police at any moment about everything we have planned.'

Straightening a piece of paper on his desk, he paused as an idea popped in his head. Glancing at Fabio, he swallowed and poured himself a third brandy.

'Get Manuel. Tell him to get himself down to the police station and do what he has to do to save us. He'll know what you mean by that.'

Fabio nodded in acknowledgement. 'Yes, sir. By what method shall he do this, sir?'

He thought deeply momentarily. His hand absentmindedly reached into the jacket draped over his chair and he pulled out his switchblade. He glanced at Fabio as he flicked the blade out from the handle and grinned. Fabio seemed to understand as he nodded once and left the room in search of Manuel.

Weighing the knife in his hand, he downed his third brandy and gripped the dark handle tightly. He then brought it hurtling towards the surface of his desk, splitting the wood as the blade cracked the smooth exterior. A nasty laugh passed his lips and he left the knife in the table as he took his jacket from the chair, dug out his packet of cigarettes and left the room, with a cigarette dangling from his mouth and his jacket hoisted over one shoulder.

 **.**

Sitting back in his chair with a heavy puff, he winced as he felt the bones of his back crack. He had spent the last hour and a bit typing up and cross-checking all the information he was putting into a series of letters. It was almost six o'clock in the morning and as he yawned, he thought about how much of an idiot he was for not doing them earlier.

Connecting his printer to his computer, he waited until it had calmed itself down before printing out the newly typed up letters, all of them personalised for whom they were intended. Originally he had only written five separate ones, but considering the new additions to the party and the change in circumstance, he now had three separate and two combined letters to produce and send off.

 _If only I'd known about the brothers sooner…_ he thought, rubbing his forehead with his fingertips. _It would have made my life so much easier._

Hearing the whirring of the printer coming to an end, he fished out the letters from the tray and checked to see if they had been printed properly. When he saw that everything was in order, he started folding the letters in three and placed them into their envelopes. Once the last letter had been tucked in, he picked up his best black pen and wrote neatly on the corresponding fronts:

 _Matthias Køhler & Lukas Bondevik_

 _Emil Steilsson_

 _Tino Väinämöinen_

 _Berwald Oxenstierna_

 _Gilbert & Ludwig Beilschmidt_

Finishing off "Beilschmidt" with a delicate stroke, he smiled and gathered all the envelopes into a neat little pile. Gazing at the time in the bottom right hand corner of his computer screen, he realised he didn't have much time until everyone started waking up to get ready for their day ahead.

But just as he was getting out of his seat, he heard a dainty _ping_ come from his computer. Looking at his screen, his eyes widened in horror when he saw the pointer moving around of its own accord. It started opening the folders on his desktop and going through all his documents.

'Fuck!'

Soon, he was hurriedly typing in codes against what could only be a hacker. He had a feeling he knew who it was, and the fact that they had been able to get into his system—his triple-checked, doubly-guarded, security based system—made him furious.

'You little bitch, get the hell out!' he growled, clacking away rapidly on his keyboard. 'That's not for your eyes!'

He spent the next quarter of an hour fighting against the intruder and was successful when he had overthrown them. He quickly ran a security check and, with unbelievable skill, managed to reset his codes and reprogram everything. By the time he was done, it had gone past seven in the morning and he cursed out loud. He had missed his chance of delivering the letters to the people they needed to be sent to before they started their day. He glared at his computer screen.

 _I guess I'll have to deliver them tonight, thanks to you._ He sighed. _What a bother._

 **.**

Ivan Braginski sighed as he scrolled down another onslaught of posts on his phone. Leaning against the wall, he checked the time in the right hand corner of the screen and raised an eyebrow quizzically. _How long does it take for two girls to go grocery shopping?_ _Do we really need that much food?_

Thinking deeper, he grinned when a thought came his way. _Of course._ I _eat all the food._

Due to the lack of food, his sisters, Irina and Natalya, had decided to do their weekly shopping trip. Because all he did was get in the way, Ivan had been instructed to wait outside until they were done, and he had … for the past hour and a half.

He frowned. _I'd better call them and see what's taking them so long._

As he went through his contacts to find his older sister's number, a loud whisper of his name reached his ears. Puzzled, he turned his head to try and find the owner of the voice, only to hear his name being whispered again. Ivan froze when his eyes landed on a figure lurking near the edge of the entrance to the shop. He beckoned Ivan to come closer, and disappeared into the side alley that broke off into the main street. Ivan and his sisters usually used this alleyway to get to the car park quicker, as there was a turning point that led down to it.

Ivan knew better than to follow this stranger into the lane, but when they had uttered his name for the third time with a manner of urgency, he felt his heart drop into his stomach. He knew that voice… he knew the owner of that voice and if that owner of that voice was here of all places calling _his_ name…

 _Oh god._

He wanted to do nothing more than run into the supermarket, find his sisters and whisk them and himself home. The further away they were from this man, the better. But when he came and grabbed Ivan by the wrist, he had no choice but act normal and comply with the action.

The man took them down to the intersection. If they turned left, they would go to the main road. If they turned right, they would go down to the carpark. Ivan didn't hesitate to send him a glare and to roughly remove his wrist from his grasp. He heard a chuckle come from under the hood that covered his features and the sound made his stomach churn.

'How did you find us?' Ivan demanded quietly, turning back to see if his sisters had finished.

The man merely grinned, showing glowing, pearly teeth. The sight made Ivan wince, but he didn't dare show the action to him.

'Ah, Ivan… You know how,' the man told him, his tone playful. 'I have many sources, you know that.'

' _Da_ , I know,' Ivan grumbled. 'Where are my sisters?'

'Relax, they're fine. It's just a really long queue.' He smiled softly. 'It's good to see you, you know?'

Ivan gave him a stormy look. 'What do you want?'

The man didn't answer straight away and his smile fell. Ivan's eye twitched in annoyance, but the spark of fear in his chest overpowered his irritation. The fact that he was there made his pulse race, and if he was there… then perhaps the others were too. Which in all truthfulness terrified Ivan to the core, and why weren't Natalya and Irina finished yet?

'You know what I want,' the man replied after a moment. 'I miss you, you know. We had a good old time, didn't we?'

'You have a strange definition of "good time"—'

Just as Ivan was about to say his name, the man slapped his palm over Ivan's mouth and hissed, 'Shut up! Don't say that here.'

Curious at his reaction, Ivan tilted his head and said, after the hand covering his mouth was removed, 'Why? Are you being followed?'

He snorted. 'Me? Followed? Don't be ridiculous, I'm smarter than that. But you never know who could be around the corner. One has to be careful.'

'Right. But your journey has been futile. We're not coming back,' Ivan told him, his tone steely. 'How could we? Did you already forget the incident with Irina—?'

'Oh, of course, it's all about the sisters with you, isn't it?' The man smiled, but it looked more like a snarl. 'How is darling Irina these days? But you know, it's funny, because if she just did as she was told instead of being the defiant little bitch that she is, we would be in a very different position right now.'

At his words, Ivan felt his temper flare and before he knew it, the man was pressed up against the wall, Ivan's hands fisting the lapels of his jacket and his face very close to his. He knew the layout of his face so well that, despite the hood covering them, Ivan glared into the man's eyes.

'Don't you dare talk about her like that,' he growled, his voice dangerously low. 'You brought that upon yourself, or did you forget why we were arguing in the first place?'

'You should have controlled her—'

'Oh? Well _you_ should have controlled your man like I asked you to and not have gotten involved in my business!' Ivan argued. He let out a chuckle. 'Give me one good reason I shouldn't just snap your neck right now.'

The man moved his head so that Ivan was able to see his eyes, and his breath hitched. He had seen them so many times that he had gotten used to their guarded state. There was the one occasion he had seen them full of laughter and creased in happiness, but he had never seen them like this. They looked almost… sincere.

'Because I still love you, Ivan, and I want nothing more than for you to come back,' he said in a voice that made Ivan weak in the knees.

But he held his ground and scoffed, letting the man fall to the ground in a heap.

'You're dumber than I thought you were,' Ivan whispered, and he relished it when the man flinched as he got to his feet. 'You honestly think I don't know what you're up to? Do you seriously think I will just waltz back into your arms because you say you still love me? I know what you're really doing here and my answer is no.'

'How did you know?' the man said wistfully after a moment's pause.

Ivan allowed himself a smile. 'You're not the only one with sources. Besides,' he continued, 'I work for someone else now. Someone stronger. Someone with better ideas and more effective ways of doing things, not like your amateur strategies.'

Whatever the man had been expecting to hear Ivan say, it wasn't that as he let out a strangled sound. 'Who?'

Ivan laughed. 'Now that would be telling.'

As the man opened his mouth to, perhaps, voice a retort, Ivan held up his hand and said, 'Stop wasting your time, we're finished here. So unless you want me to—how was it you put it that one time?—"mess with your emotions", I suggest you kindly fuck off and leave me and my sisters alone.'

The man let out a furious growl and Ivan scrunched his nose in distaste when a familiar smell wafted past his nose. He could sense a fight forming between them, as it so often did, and he was really not in the mood to go home with a new scar decorating his flesh.

'You know… if you had just listened to me, we would still be a part of your little group,' Ivan told him, watching him as he paused. 'You and I could still be together and maybe… just maybe… I'd still be in love with you.' His eyes hardened. 'But it's over. So leave us alone or the next time we meet, I will kill you.'

'This _isn't_ over,' the man rumbled, and his eyes glowed from under his hood. 'I will hunt you down like I always have, and by God you will regret this decision because you know that I _will_ find you and your sisters and make your lives a living hell.'

Ivan merely smiled at his threat, said, 'Piss off,' and turned his back on him. But as he walked away, the fear he had been trying to repress came gushing into his system and he swallowed thickly. He knew that the man's threat would be seen through and the thought of him finding them again made his skin crawl.

Thinking of his sisters, Ivan raced back to where he had been waiting for them earlier and was relieved to see them walking out of the shops. Glancing back at the backstreet he had just been in, Ivan breathed in deeply and turned back to face his sisters with a closed-lip smile, albeit with terror scratching at his heart.

* * *

 _ **To be continued...**_


	11. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Himaruya Hidekazu. The plot of this AU belongs to myself and theartisserie.**

* * *

 _"_ _All questions have answers. It's only a matter of searching for them in order to answer the questions."_

 **o**

Squaring his shoulders, Matthias placed two, strong knocks on Ludwig's dormitory door.

When he had woken up that morning, he had dreaded walking into the living room and having to deal with a moody, pissed off Lukas when he woke up later on. But much to his surprise, Lukas had already been awake. He greeted Matthias as normal and was even paid a compliment for his apple turnovers. Lukas had obviously either sampled one before he went to bed or when he got up that morning.

While Matthias didn't say anything to him out loud, he couldn't help but question his change of attitude. The previous night, he had been ready to beat Matthias to a pulp for kissing him and yet… he was fine and he treated Matthias like normal. He was utterly astounded, but he didn't say anything and went about his routine.

After their breakfast of coffee and Matthias' turnovers, Lukas had brought up the issue of having to talk to Ludwig and Gilbert about what they had briefly discussed last night. Given that their lectures were later in the day—and Matthias knew Ludwig's was the same time as his—they decided to venture down to the third floor and have their questions answered.

But as they had gone down the stairs, Matthias felt restless. There were a million and one thoughts bounding around in his head like jumping sheep and he didn't know what to do with them all. Not to mention that nightmare he had… It was enough to make him jittery. However, within his jumbled up thoughts, he wondered how he didn't wake up screaming in the middle of the night and why he woke up that morning with his forehead tingling.

Matthias snapped out of his thoughts when Lukas cleared his throat to get his attention. 'Sorry, what?'

'Are you sure this is Ludwig's dormitory?' he asked him, his narrowed eyes roving over the glossy, metal number suspiciously.

'Positive. He brought me here to show me that this is where he lived and where he'd be if I ever needed his help with anything.' He smiled at Lukas. 'I've been inside a few times, but if I recall, he shares with his brother. I haven't met him yet. He's always out and about doing things.'

Lukas nodded in acknowledgment and looked at his watch. 'It's been almost five minutes and no one has come to the door yet.'

Matthias frowned and knocked again, harder and louder. He and Lukas glanced at each other when they heard shuffling from inside and a gruff voice saying, 'Coming!' But when the door opened, Matthias and Lukas didn't come face-to-face with Ludwig. They came face-to-face with—

' _You!_ ' Gilbert pointed at them. 'We met the other night! What are you doing here?'

'What are we doing here? What are _you_ doing here?' Matthias shot back. 'You don't live here…'

Matthias' world slowed when he took in Gilbert fully and his mind went back to the other night. He remembered how he and Ludwig had acted and how comfortable they were around each other. Matthias vaguely recalled Ludwig calling Gilbert " _bruder_ " before they had revealed their identities. Ludwig had told him previously that " _bruder_ " was the German word for "brother" and when he realised what that actually meant, the truth came crashing down on him almost immediately and his mouth fell open in shock.

'Oh my _god._ _You're_ the brother…'

Gilbert started laughing and smacked a hand on Matthias' shoulder. ' _Ja_ , I'm the brother. So we finally meet—and where are my manners, come in, come in!'

Grinning sheepishly at Lukas, Matthias followed Gilbert into the dormitory, Lukas close behind him. As they walked in, the incredible smell of food being fried hit his nostrils and Matthias found himself feeling hungry again.

'I'll get Ludwig,' Gilbert told them. 'Take a seat, I'll be two seconds.'

As he disappeared into the kitchen, Lukas and Matthias sat on their couch. Soon, they heard German coming from the adjoining room, one of them being in a tone of surprise. Lukas shot Matthias a confused look before Gilbert returned, Ludwig in tow. His blue eyes landed on Matthias and his jaw slackened.

'Matt! I—what are you doing here?' Ludwig asked him, his gaze flicking towards Lukas. ' _Hallo_ , again… Lukas, was it?'

Lukas sent him a small smile and nodded. 'Sorry for the intrusion… but Matt and I were wondering if we could take up a couple minutes of your time? There's a couple of things we'd like to know.'

Ludwig and Gilbert exchanged a curious look with each other, and Gilbert crossed his arms before asking, 'What would you like to know?'

'It's about what happened the other night,' Matthias told them, watching them as they sat down opposite him and Lukas. 'There's a few things we're not exactly clear about.'

Gilbert raised an eyebrow. 'Like what?'

'Where did you get your information?' Lukas asked them bluntly. 'Did you get a letter like we did or something else?'

The brothers glanced at each other, and Matthias noticed that they looked uncomfortable. Narrowing his eyes at them, he watched as Ludwig crossed his arms and huffed out a solid breath.

'None of this was supposed to happen,' he told them, frowning deeply. 'But Gilbert and I were approached by this man about few hours after Anne had been kidnapped. His name's Arthur, and he's said that he's on our side.'

'We didn't believe him at first, of course,' Gilbert added, 'but once he said to us that we'd find friends at North Shore as opposed to enemies, we were more or less curious to see what the fuss was all about.'

'And then there was the whole thing with Anne as well.' Ludwig's expression fell at the mention of their classmate. 'He told us that the person responsible—this "Rogue Assassin"—would be there and this was our chance to grab him and to get to the truth.'

That caught Matthias' attention. 'He knows about Anne?'

Lukas snorted beside him. 'Of course he'd know about Anne, Matthias. The entire city knows about her kidnapping.'

Matthias blanched. 'Since _when?_ '

'Since the night before North Shore, wasn't it?' Gilbert asked his brother. 'It made the six o'clock news.'

 _How the fuck did I miss that?_ Matthias thought. _What was I doing?_

'In any case,' Ludwig continued, 'he's given us his details if we want to contact him for something. But we're not exactly interested… you see, we don't do this thing often. Going after criminals in the dead of night… not really our thing.'

'We do it on the off occasion, and once upon a time we did it almost every night,' Gilbert went on. 'But it just got too much, you know?'

'I can understand that,' Lukas muttered, rubbing his forehead.

Ludwig suddenly sat up straight and dropped his arms from his chest, startling the others with his abrupt movement. 'I know! We'll give the details to you! Perhaps you can find out more from him and do more with what he gives you than we can.'

'That's… not a bad idea, Ludwig,' Matthias mumbled. He grinned hugely at him. 'Yeah, that'll work!'

'Maybe he'll open up more to you than he did with us,' Gilbert said under his breath as he stood up. 'I think I left it in my jacket…'

As his brother searched for whatever it was, Ludwig gazed seriously at Matthias. 'How are you, though? Are you feeling okay?'

Matthias couldn't help the scowl that formed on his face. 'I've been better… what happened the other night is still bugging me.'

Ludwig reached over and grasped his knee, saying, 'I'm sure it'll work out soon enough. You're smart, I'm certain you'll come up with something.'

Before he could continue, he was interrupted when his brother exclaimed, 'Aha! Found it!' He came back to where the others were and sat back down next to Ludwig.

'There you are,' said Gilbert, passing Lukas a piece of paper. On it Matthias could make out an address in a neat, curved hand. 'Tell him we sent you, just in case he gets all defensive. He's… pretty old-fashioned, shall we say?'

'Thanks for this,' Matthias said. 'Hopefully we can get some answers from him,'

' _Ja_ , I hope so too. Also, I've been wanting to say— _damn_ you guys have awesome powers!' Gilbert sent them a large grin. 'They're really cool to play around with!'

'Yeah, I wanted to ask you about that,' Lukas said softly. 'How do you—?'

'How do I do it?' Gilbert finished, and Lukas nodded. 'Well, it's simple really. I have this thing where I can copy people's powers and use them for myself. It does nothing to the person whose powers I'm copying, mind you. It's a purely beneficial relationship.'

'In other words, he has power-mimicry,' Ludwig told them, eyeing his brother. 'He always has to have someone around him, though… otherwise it doesn't end well for him.'

Gilbert glared at Ludwig. 'That was one fucking time.'

Ludwig let out a booming laugh, a sound which startled Matthias. ' _One_ time? Try a little closer to twenty, _bruder_.'

'Shut _up_ , Ludwig!'

Matthias cracked a smile at the brothers. Gilbert grumbled under his breath about Ludwig being mean before he returned his gaze to Lukas and Matthias. He sent them a sheepish grin and ran a hand through his hair.

'In a way, he's right though,' he said with a begrudging tone. 'That's one of the three limitations I have. First one is I can't be on my own in case the person I'm chasing doesn't actually have a power I can use. The second thing is this, and I'll use us as an example.'

Gilbert stood from his seat on the couch and turned to Matthias. He gazed deeply at him for a fleeting moment before Matthias noticed flames licking up his pale arms. Then his attention turned to Lukas and the embers vanished immediately, only to be replaced with a blueish hue, colouring his palms and his eyes. But then when he looked at his brother, the blue vanished and they were staring at a metal Gilbert, the same type of metal that Ludwig had turned into many a time before.

'So you see, I can use your powers, right?' He then scowled. 'But say I wanted to use that boy's super speed. I would have to find his dormitory room and enter the same room he's in… in order to use it, you know.'

'So you're saying that you have to be in close proximity to someone to be able to use their power?' Lukas asked him.

'Pretty much. And the third limitation is I can't use more than one power at once. So I have to do some really quick changing if I want to use another power other than the one I'm already copying.'

'That's what you were doing that night!' Matthias yelped, his eyes growing wide in understanding. 'And here I was thinking that you had every power ever.'

Gilbert threw his head back as he laughed, clutching his stomach. 'Oh man, I _wish_. I'd have the best time.'

Matthias couldn't fight the growing smile on his lips at his words. Then his eyes settled on Ludwig.

'So, your power's a bit like Ber's, isn't it?' he aimed at him. 'You turn your body into different materials, right?'

Ludwig blinked. 'Not exactly… I have no idea what Berwald's power is, but I can only turn into the one material. I've tried others, but it seems I can only turn into this one metal.'

Lukas made an intrigued sound. 'Any idea what it is?'

He shrugged. 'No clue. I barely know anything about my power, if I'm honest. All I know is this: I can turn into metal, I can withstand most things like bullets and heat, _and_ it's my whole body that's affected all at once, not just parts of it. Pretty strange, huh?'

'Yeah… but, uh, what exactly are _your_ powers?' Gilbert said to Lukas and Matthias. 'Like, we get the general gist of it all, but what are the details?'

Lukas went first, explaining his energy projection, even going as far to explain to them his avatar. A stormy look passed over Ludwig's face at the mention of Lukas' troll, and Matthias fought the urge to smirk, remembering the incident he had had with it. Then Matthias told them about how he could produce his own fire and manipulate existing fire. Gilbert was absolutely fascinated and kept bombarding him with questions. It had been almost twenty minutes before Lukas glanced at his watch, and then at Matthias. 'We should go.'

'Yeah probably.' They stood up, Matthias grinning and Lukas nodding. 'Thanks for this, guys. We'd be lost if it weren't for you.'

'Ah, don't worry about it!' Gilbert crowed, a manic smile on his face. 'Go and kick some butt for us, _ja?_ '

' _Bruder_ , please…' Ludwig gave them a sheepish look. 'I'll see you in Engineering.'

Matthias saluted him and waved goodbye as he and Lukas left their dormitory. When they shut the door behind themselves, Matthias groaned softly. His poor head was splitting with all this new information they had gathered. It was too much to take in…

'I could do with some more coffee,' Lukas grumbled beside him, supressing a yawn. 'Shall we head up?'

Just as Matthias was about to give him his answer, he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. Fishing it out, he looked at his lock screen and saw that he had been sent a message.

 _Berwald: We need to talk. Now._

His brow dipped as he read it, his already muddled brain becoming even more so. Judging by Berwald's character and the abruptness of the text, it had to be important.

'Hey listen, you go up,' Matthias told Lukas. 'Ber wants to talk to me about something. I'll meet you there, okay?'

Lukas muttered a response that Matthias didn't quite hear before turning for the staircase with a brief wave of his hand. Frowning at his retreating back in puzzlement, Matthias looked back at his phone before going towards Berwald's door. It was three doors down opposite Ludwig's and Gilbert's dormitory, right by the staircase. Before he knocked, he watched as Lukas started climbing the stairs and he suddenly felt alone. He still felt incredibly guilty for his actions the previous night, and he hated when there was a rift between him and Lukas.

But there wasn't much he could do about it then, so he brought his hand home and knocked on Berwald's door. It opened almost immediately and Matthias sent him a smile when he appeared in the archway.

'Hey, Ber. What's up?'

Berwald looked at Matthias seriously—as he so often did—and opened the door wider, signalling with his head for Matthias to come in. He did, and raised an eyebrow quizzically. Berwald gestured with his eyes for him to sit as he shut his door.

'So you got my message?'

'Yeah…' Matthias sank down into a chair, pouting. 'What have I done now?'

Not saying a word, Berwald walked over to his coffee table and picked up the remote. Turning the television on, he pointed silently to the news channel that was playing a breaking news report.

'It's been playing all morning,' Berwald told him, and Matthias was alarmed at the accusatory expression he had on his face. 'Someone's made a lot of noise.'

Flicking his attention to the breaking news playing, Matthias strained his ears to listen as the reporter spoke to the camera.

 _'_ _There have been no updates so far as to who is responsible for last night's attack of three local hooligans Samuel Roberts, Leo Hernandez and Mitchell Rushworth. However, authorities have strong suspicion that a super, or perhaps two supers, are behind the assault. The victim of the hooligan's attempted rape, twenty-year-old Sophia Milton, has provided an eyewitness account to the events.'_

Matthias' eyes widened in shock when the woman he and Lukas had saved appeared on the screen. She had a grey blanket wrapped around her shoulders, and judging by the lighting in the background and the state of her clothes that could be seen, the interview had been done shortly after they had left the scene.

 _'_ _I was just on my way home from a late-night lecture when I was pulled into the alleyway,'_ the woman, Sophia, told the person interviewing her. _'They started… doing things to me against my own will and… I was completely at a loss as to what to do._

 _'_ _But then… and I know this is going to sound crazy but… that super saved my life. Those three guys almost… you know… and if it wasn't for that super stepping in, I would have been lying in that alleyway with no dignity and possibly no life, because those guys meant business.'_

She looked directly at the camera, a small smile on her face.

 _'_ _If that super is watching, I want to thank him. At least I know that one of these supers is capable of kindness.'_

A surge of delight went through Matthias' system at her words, but it was extinguished when the grave expression of the news reporter returned to the screen. He started saying how Sophia clearly needed medical attention, and how dangerous supers actually were. Matthias felt his blood frothing in anger when the news reader scoffed in incredulity and made a face at the camera at Sophia's gratitude to who Matthias knew was Lukas.

 _'_ _We need to remind our audience that supers_ are _dangerous individuals and need to be dealt with accordingly, and we now cross over to Superhuman Expert Joshua Adams for his take on the event and for his opinion on these superhumans. Joshua, what do you—?'_

Berwald scowled heavily at the screen as he turned it off. 'Such bullshit.' He turned to Matthias, crossing his arms over his chest. 'You have some explaining to do.'

Matthias blinked at Berwald a few times before he said, 'I'm not the person that woman was talking about. It was Lukas.'

'Even so, what were you doing out? You almost got caught.'

'If you must know,' Matthias grumbled, 'we were going for a walk. Luke wanted me to talk.'

Berwald cocked his head to the side in bemusement. 'About what happened with the Rogue Assassin?'

Letting out a sigh, Matthias nodded and set his gaze on his shoes. He heard the legs of another chair scrape the floor as Berwald moved to sit opposite him. He placed his hand on his shoulder, and Matthias looked at the tall man in surprise. There was sympathy in those eyes of his, and his mouth was turned down in concern.

It was amazing how such little action could mean so much. Matthias sniffed and huffed through his nose.

'We'll figure it out,' Berwald said, squeezing Matthias' shoulder reassuringly.

Glancing at him, Matthias hoped he was right.

 **.**

 _30/09; 6:23am:_

 _1_ _st_ _October, 8:30 pm, Smith Drive, Rosebery_

 _Mafia conference._

 _I cannot be certain which mafia head of our city is the main instigator, but all I know for certain is that there is going to be a conference at the above time. According to my sources, they are there to discuss joining forces with other mafias from outside our city._

 _You must stop them. The entire city's future is at stake. But, perhaps, the most important thing you have yet to do is to find information to link the Rogue Assassin to this mafia head. I have reason to believe that he is working for them, but I have no evidence to prove such an assumption._

 _You need to find this evidence. It is essential that you do so._

 _Good luck, I wish you well, and please…_

 _Beware._

 _Danger is coming your way._

* * *

 ** _To be continued..._**


	12. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Himaruya Hidekazu. The plot of this AU belongs to myself and theartisserie.**

 **Mature warning: Strong injury mention.**

* * *

 _"_ _De fumo in flamman."_

 **o**

Staring at the roof of the car, Matthias blew out air heavily. The sky outside was dotted with glittering masses of constellations and a full moon. If he wasn't bored out of his mind, he might have appreciated the sight. Tapping his fingers on the steering wheel, he took in the apartment complex a few metres away from their parking spot.

They had received their most recent letter late last night and according to it, there was a huge convention happening right at that moment. This mafia head was attending—a very important mafia head—who was crucial to the current mission they had been set on. Unfortunately, they couldn't catch the guy as they didn't have enough evidence to connect him with the Rogue Assassin, another element of their mission they had to complete. Despite him being in police custody, the Rogue Assassin was remaining tight-lipped and uncooperative. Due to this, the five of them were determined to get the bastard to talk by any means possible and through that, to find out where he had taken Anne.

But the reason Matthias was waiting outside in the parking lot in his car was because of the damage he had caused last time with Gilbert, and therefore was stuck on surveillance duty instead of being in the field. When they had had their brief meeting to sort out their plan and strategy, Tino had openly expressed his concern and caution of Matthias, due to the extreme power he had displayed at North Shore. He had said that he was worried that his spike of violence might accidentally get in the way of what they were about to do, and that was to get physical and valid evidence of the criminal activities happening in the area and to be able to connect them with the Rogue Assassin and this new assailant. Matthias, as expected, was anything but happy with this arrangement, but he could see where Tino was coming from. The last thing he wanted was to lose control again… or hurt someone by accident…

'My god, are they having dinner with this guy?' Matthias complained, looking at the car's glowing clock. 'They've been in there close to two hours! My butt is starting to get sore from all this sitting.'

The group had allocated Tino, Berwald and Emil to go the source provided by Ludwig and Gilbert, an Englishman by the name of Arthur, to get the information they needed. Lukas, on the other hand, had volunteered to keep Matthias company and to be an extra set of eyes. Matthias was glad for the company, but sitting in the car not being able to do anything or hear anything made him even more restless.

He heard Lukas sigh. 'Go for a walk, then,' he grumbled. 'Get some air, I'll stay here.'

Matthias scoffed. 'And leave you on your own? Come on, Luke, you know me better than that.'

'Then don't complain,' he told him, rolling his eyes. 'You got yourself into this, so shut up.'

'I know…' Matthias muttered dejectedly, pouting. He wanted to get into some kind of action; there was adrenaline pumping in his veins. He needed to at least get out of the car.

Opening the car door after lifting his hood and putting his sunglasses on, he mumbled to Lukas, 'Be right back,' and stepped out. He inhaled a breath of fresh air and leant against the hood of the car. Craning his neck, he took in the night sky, with its millions of stars and the large pearly globe, and wondered what it was like to be normal.

Then again… What was the true concept of normal?

Matthias reckoned his life had never been normal, as from the moment he was born until now, something strange had always happened to him. Maybe he was destined to a life of danger, of capturing capricious and precarious human beings who thought a life in the streets with guns, drugs and blood was the way to go. Maybe the fire flowing through his body was a sign as to just how destructible he could be, and could potentially become. _Maybe the guys do have something to be worried about after all…_

And then there was the whole situation with Lukas. For the past two days Matthias had barely thought of anything else other than that night in the alleyway. He just couldn't get the image of him kissing his best friend out of his head, nor could he stop the phantom feeling of having Lukas' lips pressed against his. Matthias also couldn't quite accept that things were normal between them. Despite Lukas treating him as he normally did, Matthias still felt guilty…

A sudden _crack_ caught his attention, causing his head to turn towards the direction it had come from. His eyes scanned the area, taking in an abandoned car park, save for a few cars of the residents that lived in the apartments, a lone green bin and a stray tabby cat. A rap on the window screen caused him to look at Lukas, who held out his hands in a questioning gesture. Matthias put a finger to his lips and held up a palm; he froze when a new smell came onto the scene.

That smell… It was a combined scent, a smoky kind. Sniffing briefly, Matthias noted that it might have been coming from the car. Puzzled, he bent down to inspect the bonnet, only to reel back from the intense smell. After blinking a few times, he bent down lower and realised that it seemed to be coming from _under_ the car.

Matthias quickly sent Lukas a smile of reassurance before getting on his hands and knees. He supressed a cough and peeked under the car. A flashing bulb of red light from the underside caught his eye, and at first, Matthias didn't know what he was looking at. Then it him, and his heart dropped into his stomach. Flashing red light… Smoky odour… Underneath a car…

 _Oh god, Lukas is in the car._

He leapt to his feet, not caring that he probably would have terrified Lukas with his sudden appearance. Rushing to his side of the car, Matthias ignored the puzzled look Lukas sent him, the only thing on his mind being _get him out of the car!_ When he had reached the passenger side, everything he had read about explosives came rushing back to him and his hand on the handle stiffened. He had to be careful, in case he set the thing off. Locking eyes with the navy that stared back at him, he gently opened the car door. He breathed a loud sigh of relief when nothing happened.

'What's going on?' was the first thing Lukas asked him. 'Why are you so—?'

'Get out of the car,' Matthias told him in a low voice. 'Get out of the car slowly, Luke… Okay?' He forced a smile to lighten the darkening mood.

Lukas raised a pale eyebrow and made no inclination to move; his eyes never wavered from Matthias' face. It then hit him as to how nice they shone in the moonlight, with the colour radiant and so beautiful… He was suddenly taken back to that night in the alleyway—

 _No Matthias! Stop right there. Now's not the time. You fucked that up. Don't fuck this up too._

Another moment passed before Lukas, blunt as ever, blurted, 'There's a bomb under the car, isn't there?'

Matthias dropped his gaze and studied his shoes. He wondered how Lukas was always so sharp, always on top of things, when he himself took several moments to figure out a situation or what was really going on.

Lukas gave a slight nod in acknowledgement of Matthias' silent answer, his guise one of contained fear. He licked his lips and fiddled with his fingers. If what was happening wasn't so dangerous, Matthias might have pondered on the fact of how much Lukas had opened up to him throughout the years. But he didn't have time for that. He needed to get Lukas out of the car.

'Here,' he said, holding out his hand. 'We'll do this together, yeah? I'm with you every step of the way.'

Almost instantly, Lukas grabbed onto it. Matthias squeezed it softly, musing as to how nice it felt in his own— _MATTHIAS, STOP._

He heard Lukas gulp. 'If we die, I'll kill you.'

Matthias let out a soft chuckle in response. Lukas then lifted his hood over his head and slowly began to place one foot outside of the car. The air became thick with tension as the sole of his shoe hit the ground. Matthias began to get a little hot under the collar. As Lukas shifted to move his other foot, Matthias had never been so scared. The last thing he wanted to happen was for the both of them to be blasted into a million pieces.

'You're doing great, Luke,' he whispered, trying his hardest to hide the concern in his voice. 'Almost there.'

Lukas, instead of speaking, held out his other hand. Matthias slid his palm against his and wrapped his fingers around it. He could feel it trembling against his.

Swallowing, Lukas whispered, 'On three?'

Matthias held Lukas' hands firmly, his entire body tensing and his jaw setting. He gave him a stiff nod. Azure met navy and that brief connection was all the encouragement they needed from the other to continue.

' _En… to… tre!_ '

Lukas leapt from his seat, straight into Matthias' arms. They backed away from the car, Matthias' hands planted securely on Lukas' waist as he pulled him away. He let out a short breath and gave Lukas a small smile. However, the severity of the situation slapped them both harshly, amplified by the red light flashing brighter on the ground beneath the car.

'Run.' Matthias hurriedly let go of Lukas. 'Fucking run!'

The pair split and ran for opposite sides of the car park. Matthias found refuge behind the railing of the staircase leading to the front of the apartment complex. Lukas sprinted towards a large gap between two parked cars, hiding behind a silver Fiat. Matthias noticed the significant distance between them and immediately felt uncomfortable about it. He would have preferred it if Lukas was with him, so that way he knew he was out of any kind of direct danger. Also, if worst came to worst, Matthias could at least offer him some kind of protection—not that Lukas couldn't take care of himself. But Matthias would have liked it if he could at least have that ability.

Matthias flicked his gaze to their car, watching as the light beneath it flashed more frequently. It was going at a speed too fast for Matthias' liking. _Shit! It's going to explode!_ He ducked down and prepared for the detonation.

The explosion never came. The red light was still flashing at a million miles per hour and a greyish smoke began billowing out, coming through from the edges of the car and the wheels. Matthias looked at Lukas, who appeared just as confused as he felt. Something wasn't right, that much he knew for sure. It all seemed to come clear when something caught his eye, something coming from under the car Lukas was crouched behind. His eyes went round as dinner plates and his mouth slackened in horror.

Another flashing red light was illuminating the concrete below the silver Fiat, but this one was more sinister than the one flashing under their car. This one had an irregular pattern, flashing rapidly before calming down and starting up again. Matthias noticed that the smell was stronger there than it had been from their car.

The bottom of his stomach vanished when he saw Lukas turn his back to him in order to look around the area. Matthias ran his hands over his face in anxiety before his fingers grappled with his hair under his hood. A strained, somewhat controlled scream bubbled in his throat when he realised he couldn't just yell out his name. They were in a dangerous situation, possibly with their foes around them, remoting the bomb—or bombs, they could have planted multiple—in plain sight. Matthias couldn't just reveal Lukas' identity as that was an unspoken rule: _when in combat, identities remain hidden and should not, under any circumstance, be revealed._ But as if Matthias could just call him 'Glowy' as he had done in his brain the first time he found out about his power. Lukas would never forgive him for calling him such an "idiotic thing" as he would phrase it, along with giving him the blankest expression he could muster. But regardless of what Lukas would think about this strange nickname, Matthias couldn't risk letting any potential enemies know the truth.

He was running out of time and out of options. The light was flashing away sporadically and he started to panic. _How is he not noticing that the light is right next to him? It's going to blow up! FOR GOD'S SAKE, LUKAS, STOP LOOKING THAT WAY AND LOOK BACK AT ME!_

Lukas, much to Matthias' dismay, did no such thing. His hand was curled against the car door, glowing slightly blue. He showed no signs of turning around any time soon. Matthias' breath came out in short puffs, his hesitancy taking a toll on his body. But when the smell grew stronger, Matthias went with his instinct as a last resort option.

' _LUKAS!_ '

His shout caught Lukas' attention, causing him to turn around. Matthias started waving his arms, trying to communicate to him to get away from his spot and come towards him instead, to safety. When Lukas only shook his head and frowned at him in confusion, Matthias supressed a shriek of frustration and got up from his hiding spot, running towards him.

'Get away! Get the fuck away from there!' he hollered, sheer panic taking over his senses when the mixed smell of agitated cordite and nitro-glycerine wafted past his nose. 'The one under the car is a fake! The bomb's next to _you!_ '

Matthias saw Lukas' eyes widen in terror and his head whipped from side to side to try and pinpoint the bomb. He seemed to give up as he hurriedly scrambled to his feet and started running towards Matthias. But the elements in the air began to thicken and Matthias' heart caught in his throat as a flicker of flame appeared… a few feet away from Lukas' foot.

'NO!'

 **.**

Lukas' world turned black and a strong wind hit him full in the face. He felt one side of his body hit the ground hard, and a heat burning hot enveloped his being. Other sounds around him were drowned out by the deafening ringing in his ears. He couldn't feel anything except the thundering rush of blood in his body and the booming beating of his heart against his ribcage.

Then silence took its post. Lukas panicked.

 _Is this it? Have I died?_

He, of course, was anything but dead. He found this to be the case when he gingerly opened his eyes and took in a halo of red around him. Screams and cries of fear met his dully buzzing eardrums and he felt drops of water landing on his cheek. _Must be raining…_ he thought absentmindedly as he rolled onto his back, wincing as his muscles protested against his movement. Heaving out a great sigh, Lukas glanced up and his breath hitched as everything came hurrying back. A bomb, an explosion, Matthias running towards him…

And there was Matthias, leaning over him. Lukas realised that the man had shielded him from the blast of the bomb. He sent Matthias a glare as extreme worry overtook his senses.

'Are you trying to get yourself killed, you stupid Dane?' he growled at Matthias. 'You could have died! Are you as suicidal as I thought you…?'

His voice trailed off as another drop of water hit his face. Lukas' eyes widened as they fully took in what they were seeing. Matthias' lids were screwed shut and his lips curved in a tight grimace. His limbs were shaking as he hovered over Lukas, and Lukas was alarmed to discover that the drops of water that had hit his cheek were Matthias' tears.

That wasn't possible… Matthias rarely cried.

At the sound of his voice, Matthias sluggishly gazed at Lukas, and a soft grin replaced the pained expression he had before. Lukas gasped inwardly at the agony embedded within the watery, azure hue, something he had never seen in them. They were always bright, full of laughter and somehow always glittering with good cheer. It frightened Lukas to see them without their usual grace and charm.

'Thank god it worked…' Matthias whispered, his voice raspy. 'Thank god you're alive.'

Lukas felt like a ton of bricks had fallen on his chest as Matthias collapsed on top of him, his arms no longer strong enough to hold himself up. He tried to ignore the fact that his hair tickled his nose—which smelt of ash and smoke—and that the warmth of his body on his was endearing in a way. Wriggling out from underneath him as graciously as he possibly could, he sucked in some clogged air, coughed throatily and looked at the pitiful form of Matthias. When he took in the state of his back, Lukas didn't hesitate to let out a cry.

He knew that Matthias was powerful, extremely so. He had showcased how potentially dangerous he could be in the warehouse with Gilbert and the Rogue Assassin. But Lukas hadn't expected this.

Instead of burns and singed cotton on Matthias' back and hoodie, scarlet oozed and spread across the fabric. Several pieces of debris from the bomb, glass from the exploded car and various other pieces had buried themselves deep into Matthias' flesh, having caused a number of small wounds. Looking at them, with the amount of blood that seeped out of the cuts and knowing the severity of the explosion—not to mention the extremes he must have gone through to keep the flames at bay—Matthias was in more danger than he appeared to be.

Lukas was in shock. Terror swept his being, and he froze where he was, unable to fully comprehend what was happening. He hadn't felt like this in a long time… He hadn't seen anyone he loved be in this kind of situation in a very, very long time…

His instincts kicked in and, for the first time in many years, Lukas was screaming. He yelled for help and gripped Matthias' arm like a lifeline. He couldn't remember the last time he had been this loud, couldn't remember ever having openly expressed his emotions as he currently was. Lukas was furious at Matthias for what he had done, was feeling vengeful towards the person who left the bombs in the first place. He was also terrified of losing the idiot, who was perhaps the only person who remained from his childhood. He was the person who tolerated his cold exterior and had, more often than not, shown affection and tenderness for him. He couldn't lose Matthias… he just couldn't.

Unable to hold back any longer, Lukas hollered at the fallen man. 'I cannot believe you! Why, Matthias? Why did you do this?'

Matthias kept quiet for a moment, his eyes half-closed and his mouth slightly parted. Lukas could hear him swallowing thickly and breathing raggedly.

'I had to,' he gasped out, licking his dry lips. 'I'd only do it for the people I care about most in the world… _especially you_.'

Lukas watched in horror as those eyes—those bloody eyes that always managed to suck him in—disappeared under their lids and Matthias' entire body slackened. His world slowed down, the noise around him muted and his wildly pounding heart stopped.

Soon, all that was heard was the faint approach of sirens, shouts and sobs from other civilians as they exited a crumbling building, and a distraught howl that echoed in the night.

* * *

 _ **To be continued...**_


	13. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Himaruya Hidekazu. The plot of this AU belongs to myself and theartisserie.**

 **Mature warning: Injury/hospital mention.**

* * *

 _"_ _And if you're still breathing, you're the lucky ones."—_ Youth _by Daughter_

 **o**

It had been a long time since the hospital had been this busy. It had never seen such a disaster occur in the space of a few seconds as the one that had hit their city that evening. An array of people crowded the tiny establishment, taking refuge in the corridors, nursing wounds and comforting each other. The few nurses that worked at the small hospital rushed continuously up and down the packed corridors, their arms laden with bandages, antiseptic and bags of cotton balls.

It turned out that, as Lukas and the others had discovered on the way to the hospital in the back of the ambulance, several other bombs had been planted around the city. They had resulted in a multitude of skeletal apartment buildings, crumbled brick and stone decorating the streets, and injured inhabitants coming in masses to the hospital. But Lukas wasn't paying attention to the surrounding people as he paced up and down the little strip of floor he had. His mind was elsewhere, on someone else.

The minute they had gotten to the scene, the police had descended upon Lukas to get a hold of the situation. Lukas had been cradling Matthias' body in his arms as he quickly blurted to them about the planted bombs. Shortly after, two ambulances arrived and the paramedics sprang into action. They were immediately told by Lukas that he was going wherever Matthias went and if they tried to separate them… Well, God help them.

When the paramedics had assured him that his wish would be granted, Lukas' eyes had locked onto the decrepit apartment complex, and his heart had leapt into his throat at the apparent absence of his step-brother. Where was Emil? Where were Tino and Berwald? His thoughts had been answered almost instantly when the trio came out of the building, ashen-faced and coughing their lungs out. Despite their disgruntled appearances, Lukas had been more than glad to see them otherwise uninjured and alive… however, the same couldn't be said for Matthias. They all then had hopped into the back of one of the two ambulances, and Lukas had ignored their onslaught of questions when they saw Matthias strapped to a stretcher. Instead, he had grabbed his hand and brushed some hair away from his eyes.

The ride to the hospital had been strangely silent.

'Lukas… Calm down.' To Lukas, Berwald's deep voice sounded like it was underwater. 'He'll be fine.'

Lukas said nothing, just continued to pace hurriedly with his hands going from being in his pockets to running through his hair.

He hated hospitals. The last time he had been in one, he had seen someone very close to him on the verge of death. Since that day, Lukas associated hospitals with nothing more than grief, sadness and being on the edge of insanity. Being in the hospital made him want to turn around and run away, made him want to get rid of the gnawing feeling that made his stomachs do flips. If it wasn't for his concern for Matthias and the fact that Matthias was his oldest friend, Lukas might have just done that.

Matthias had been rushed into emergency as soon as they had arrived. Unfortunately for Lukas, he was ordered to stay behind in the waiting room while the stretcher bearing Matthias was whisked away behind a pair of red doors. Lukas had found himself reaching out for the hand he had been holding for the entirety of the trip that hung off of the side of the stretcher, wanting nothing more than to feel its warmth against his palm again…

Soon after that, they had been taken into the waiting room, or what remained of it due to the amount of people in it. As procedure in a disaster situation, everyone was to be checked over for any injuries. The four of them had been checked over by a male nurse, who bandaged them up as best he could with the limited supplies he had. Lukas was astounded to discover that Tino, Berwald and his step-brother had escaped with very little injuries: Emil had grazes running down both his arms, a split lip and a bruised hip; Tino was sporting a large bruise on his cheek, along with a deep scratch on his collarbone; Berwald, lastly, had the least injuries out of all of them, having merely a single scratch in the middle of his right cheek. Lukas himself had more wounds on his face and arms than anywhere else, although he knew he would have multiple bruises on his torso the next day. He had cut his eyebrow, there was a graze on the bridge of his nose and his cheek, and his arms were covered in small scratches, but not as serious as Emil's were.

Since then and since Matthias had been taken in, two hours had passed, and the wait was not doing any good to Lukas' nerves.

'You know what I don't get?' Emil muttered as he brought his crossed, bandaged arms further up his chest. 'Why so many bombs? Why those particular apartment buildings? What's the point of putting the entire city in turmoil if you're targeting someone specific?'

'What makes you think someone specific was being targeted?' Tino asked him, frowning.

Lukas saw Emil glance at him briefly before whispering, 'Well… Matthias isn't here with us, is he?'

A strained pause fell between them. Lukas' brain was running overtime as Emil's statement sunk in. Maybe Matthias _was_ the intended target. After all… they had planted a fake bomb under _his_ car. They must have known something about Matthias' ability to put himself on the line for the sake of others. _Ha… They expected this outcome, did they?_ Lukas thought bitterly. _If they've killed him… I'll kill them._

'Emil, don't be ridiculous,' Tino said, shaking his head. 'There's no way they could have known who he was! Lukas, he was wearing his disguise, wasn't he?' he aimed at Lukas with an eyebrow raised.

Lukas nodded, putting his fidgety hands into his jeans' pockets. 'It was the first thing he did before getting out of the car.'

'There you go,' Tino said matter-of-factly. 'Besides, no one except us and the Beilschmidts know about his power, you know? I highly doubt that they'd do something like this…'

'They sent us there.' The three turned their heads to Berwald. 'Ludwig and his brother gave us the address. What if… you know… it was a trap they set up?'

'You can't seriously think that!' Emil cried, who was immediately called upon for his loud voice by Tino and Lukas. 'What would be their motive? They helped us at North Shore! No, I refuse to believe that.'

Before anyone could say anything more, the same male nurse that had treated them earlier in the evening tapped Lukas on his shoulder. Turning around, Lukas saw that his dark eyes were crinkled in a soft smile.

'Your friend just came out of emergency,' he told him. 'He's okay. He's going to make a full recovery.'

All the tension that had built up in Lukas' body over the last two hours dissolved into nothing and relief flooded his being at the news. As he ran his hands through his hair, he heard the others let out breaths and Tino a strangled laugh.

'Can we see him?' Lukas asked the nurse, shoving his hands back into his pockets. He needed to see for himself that Matthias was okay.

The nurse nodded and held out an inviting arm. The four followed the young nurse, weaving through people who held icepacks to their heads, who sat on the floors of the hallways with stained clothes from ash, plaster or blood, and who had frightened conversions with each other in whispered tones. The entire place reeked of antiseptic and iron; Lukas found himself wrinkling his nose in distaste.

They had reached the other end of the hospital in surprisingly little time and Lukas' calmer state vanished as his stomach somersaulted. The worry that had been building up since the explosion and all through the journey in the ambulance returned tenfold. What state was Matthias left in? Did the doctors have to perform serious surgery on him? What if he was rendered injured for the rest of his life?

As the nurse poked his head briefly into the first room to his left, Lukas tried to take deep, slow breaths. He was being ridiculous, he knew that… but he couldn't help but feel that way. Matthias was, after all, someone very important to him.

'He's in here,' the nurse told them. 'He's asleep at the moment, but he should wake up soon. He's definitely a lucky one…' he trailed off, looking off into the distance. 'Surviving that… he's lucky he's alive.'

Lukas swallowed and gazed at his feet. Matthias was an idiot, that was absolutely certain, but he had saved Lukas' life. That made him even more of a moron who needed a hefty scolding. To place himself in that kind of danger… the thought made Lukas' blood boil. But the feeling dissipated when he realised how selfless it had been of him to risk his life like that. Lukas knew that kind of attitude ran through Matthias like his blood, had known it since they were kids. He had seen said attitude be the motivation behind a lot of his actions during their teenage years, but Lukas had never known how far Matthias was willing to go. Tonight was certainly a first for both of them.

Then again… Matthias wasn't the sort to let people push himself or others around, and Lukas knew at that moment that Matthias had done it the most for him. Whenever he had been in trouble, Matthias was there to lend him a hand and to chase the bad guys away. The thought caused his cheeks to burn.

 _Idiot…_

'Thank you for everything,' Tino said, shaking hands with the nurse. Lukas gave the nurse a nod in acknowledgement before stepping into the room. What he saw made him almost gasp out loud.

Matthias was the only patient in the white-washed room. He seemed to blend in with the blanched space, with his pale skin and hair. The only things that stood out were the freckles that lined his skin, the splotches of red seeping through the bandages wrapped around his torso and back, and the number of grazes on his face and arms. He had been lain on his stomach with his arms placed by his sides; his face was angled to face the doorway and Lukas could see the thin tubing connected to his nose and propped behind his ears.

It might have been a trick of the light, but Lukas was suddenly looking at two people. Two people in the same room, bodies in the same broken state and the same bed. Shaking his head, he wiped the image from his mind, but it didn't help the idea that he was suddenly thirteen again…

He had been prepared to see Matthias in a better state than when he had left him behind in the waiting room. Lukas, however, wasn't prepared for the actual thing and he froze for a moment, simply taking in what he saw. He heard the others enter the room and heard their breaths hitch. Tino whispered, 'Oh god,' while Emil and Berwald simply let out a sigh.

There was a moment's pause before Emil's voice came from next to him. 'You know, Lukas, you haven't told us what happened. What did he do to end up in here?'

Lukas was quiet for a second before he replied, 'He saved my life.' When mutters of confusion reached his ears, he continued. 'He… protected me from the blast. Someone put a fake one under our car and when we got away from it, I ran to a car that had the actual bomb underneath it…'

He paused, and started walking towards the sleeping man. As he walked, he told the others about Matthias' quick thinking to get Lukas away from the bomb and how he had shielded him from the explosion, controlling the flames to prevent them from burning them. He didn't tell them about Matthias' vulnerable condition afterwards, with the agony in his eyes and the tears that had dropped from them…

'But while he judged the flames, he misjudged the debris,' he said. He was at Matthias' side and he slowly sank into a nearby chair. Pulling it closer towards the bed, Lukas went on to say, 'All these small bits of glass, the car and the bomb got lodged in his back. There was so much blood…'

Lukas stopped, unable to go further. A collective hiss from the others filled the little room at his story.

'Shit…' Emil shook his head. 'Thank god he's alive…'

Murmurs of agreement came from the rest of them before a thick silence settled around them. No one said anything when Lukas reached for Matthias' hand for the third time that evening, interlinking his fingers with his and stroking the back of his hand with his thumb. His eyes settled on Matthias' peaceful face, taking in his flat fringe upon his forehead, his slightly parted mouth and his flickering eyelids. Lukas didn't know how the thought came into his head, but he found himself wishing to see them open, focused on him, perhaps creased with laugh lines and shining with humour.

He didn't know for how long they had sat quietly when an older nurse came in. She told them all that it was probably best if they headed home for the night as the crisis had calmed down and the authorities were getting on top of things. Lukas immediately told her that he wasn't going anywhere until Matthias had woken up, and he sent her a pleading glance. He hated begging, especially through his expressions, but she needed to understand that he needed to be there for Matthias.

Much to his surprise, she let him stay. She told the others, with a sad smile on her face, that they had to leave. Lukas promised he'd give them updates throughout the night and wished them a safe journey home. Berwald gave him a nod, Tino a knowing smile and Emil a squeeze on his shoulder before they walked out. Lukas was left alone, with an unconscious Matthias and a somewhat comforting silence as his company.

 **.**

It was well past midnight when Matthias showed signs of waking.

A handful of nurses, including the male and the older woman, came and went. They checked in on Matthias and asked if Lukas needed anything. He always told them that he was fine and that he'd come and get them if he wasn't.

Throughout the two and a half hours since Berwald, Tino and Emil left, Lukas had preoccupied himself with tending to Matthias, or by sitting next to the bed and staring at him. He was too jittery to sleep; while his body was exhausted, his mind was bright and alert. Nervous energy flowed through him, and he was feeling too anxious to take his eyes off Matthias.

He had gotten a phone call from his mother, Myra, later on in the evening, asking him if he and Matthias were alright. She had heard on the news only then that areas near his university had been blown up. He told her that he was fine, but said that Matthias had been caught up in the blast and was currently in hospital. He instantly regretted telling her for she started to panic about Matthias, telling him that she was going to come and see him. Since Matthias and Lukas had been friends for so long, Matthias knew Lukas' mother as well as his own. She often commented that Matthias was like her second son, to which he always stated that she was his second mother.

Lukas managed to reassure her that he was okay, just sleeping, and that she didn't need to come. It took a lot of convincing before she finally gave in, demanding that Lukas was to keep her updated. He bade her goodnight and promised, just as he had done with the others, to call her if anything came up. Her phone call had spurred him to let Matthias' parents know of his condition, and he wondered if they already knew. Once he had called them, the conversation mirrored the one he had had with his mother, and he told them that he wouldn't be leaving Matthias' side until he was absolutely certain that he was okay and that he would call them if anything happened.

Also during that time, Lukas had restyled Matthias' hair into its usual spiky fashion. He inwardly savoured the silky feeling between his fingers, and he found himself doing it more often than not, sometimes without even realising it. His digits also found themselves getting entangled with Matthias'; he enjoyed the sensation of having their palms pressed together. He noted how smooth his hands were and wondered how they weren't calloused from him constantly generating fire.

Lukas was counting up a series of tallies he had recorded on a spare sheet of paper he had found of all the freckles he had counted on Matthias' shoulder, cheeks and nose when he heard a soft groan. Tearing his eyes away from his working out, Lukas watched in anticipation as Matthias drew in a long breath and his eyebrows came together in a frown. He placed the paper and pen on the table beside the bed as the lids covering those eyes Lukas wanted so badly to see opened. The blue hue was clouded with sleep, and when they settled on Lukas he let out a quiet sigh. A dopey smile graced Matthias' lips and he shifted to move his arm, his palm open and held towards Lukas.

'Hey _kære,_ ' Matthias greeted. 'Glad to see you came out okay.'

Hearing his voice, even though it sounded like it hadn't been used in weeks, Lukas' body slumped in fatigue. _Thank god, oh thank god…_ he thought. He slid his hand into Matthias' offered one, not hesitating to grip it tightly and to bring it close to him.

Lukas' emotions were in ruin. There were a lot of things he wanted to say to Matthias, but he didn't know where to begin. He wanted to scream at him and scold him for putting his life on the line, but on the other hand he wanted to thank Matthias for saving _his_ life. Lukas also wanted nothing more than to bring Matthias to his chest and run his fingers through his hair and trace those stupid freckles on his cheeks. He also wanted to grasp Matthias' face in his palms and brush his mouth with his own as he had wanted to do for the past few _months_ but had been too scared to do so. Yet he wanted nothing else than to lay his head on Matthias' pillow and let sleep overtake him because he was just so tired…

He had never felt this kind of onslaught of emotions in his life. He didn't know what to do with them all. Gazing at Matthias' face, full of life and his eyes shimmering with his usual good-naturedness, something inside him shattered. He felt the wall he had taken so long to build come crashing down and all sorts of sensations bubbled close to his heart.

Grasping Matthias' hand with both of his own, Lukas pressed them to his forehead, and he suddenly found it hard to breathe properly. His body started to shake as he tried to repress a forthcoming force in his throat. He had been so scared, so afraid for Matthias' safety. He was so tired, yet relieved and overwhelmed with happiness. He was so conflicted that he didn't know what to say or do. The emotions he felt were so _similar_ to the ones he experienced seven years ago…

Lukas gasped, and let his barrier collapse entirely.

 **.**

When Matthias set his eyes on Lukas, he knew something was wrong. He was strangely quiet, more so than usual, and he couldn't help but feel concerned. Lukas hadn't said a word to him since he had woken up, and he was sitting on his chair with Matthias' hand in his own rested on his forehead. He could feel Lukas shaking and instant worry exploded within him. When he heard him let out a gasp, an odd feeling enveloped Matthias' being.

'Hey, what's wrong?' he asked, clearing his throat in attempt to get rid of the raspy voice he had. 'What's the matter?'

When Lukas remained quiet, Matthias grew more uneasy. When his grip tightened on Matthias' hand and a sob escaped his throat, Matthias' world stopped. It seemed that the first sob was only the precursor of a complete meltdown as before he knew it, Matthias was watching with a heavy heart as Lukas' body heaved with heart-wrenching cries. He had seen Lukas cry before, but it had never been as bad as this. This was a side he had never witnessed; this was Lukas pouring his soul out for the world to see. It was almost as bad as that one time all those years ago…

Lukas let go of Matthias' hand and buried his face in his palms, muffling his wavering moans and hiding his tears. Matthias felt his heart break and he tried to move to sit up, only to grit his teeth and repress several groans of pain. His back stung when he moved and his muscles ached to the point where he physically didn't have the energy to shift his upper body. So Matthias, with his one free limb, gently placed his palm on Lukas' head.

'Hey, hey,' he whispered in a low voice as he brushed his fingers through Lukas' hair. 'Shh… It's okay. It's all over, Lukas. Look, hey, we're alive! We're safe… Shh, please don't cry.'

But Lukas showed no signs of stopping anytime soon. So Matthias continued to stroke his hair and whisper consoling words in English, Danish and the little Norwegian he knew in an attempt to calm him down. Matthias was startled when Lukas leapt from his seat and dove towards him. He felt Lukas' arms wrap around his waist—and he noticed that he didn't put too much pressure on his tender back—and his chin rested in the junction of Matthias' neck and shoulder. He could feel Lukas' trembling body against his and his warm breath against his skin.

It took a few moments for Lukas to calm down, all the while having an iron grip on Matthias. Despite being shocked at Lukas' change in character, Matthias smiled inwardly at the close contact, even more so when Lukas muttered in his ear in a ragged voice, 'I hate you so much. Fuck you.'

Matthias let out a chuckle and replied, 'Love you too, Luke,' and tried to remove his arm from underneath Lukas. It took him a few moments to do so but when he did, he didn't hesitate to wrap it around Lukas' waist and bring him closer. _This is nice…_ he thought absentmindedly, closing his eyes in serenity. _I could get used to this…_

Feeling Lukas shift, Matthias relaxed his hold and watched as Lukas brought his chair even closer to the bed. He planted his head on Matthias' pillow, effectively bringing them face-to-face. It looked like an uncomfortable position, but if it bothered Lukas, he didn't show it—in fact, the only thing he did show was his extreme disapproval by sending Matthias the mother of all glares. The look didn't faze Matthias at all. He knew why he was doing it and he sighed in resignation.

'Don't look at me like that,' Matthias told him, eyes trailing over Lukas' red cheeks, nose and eyes. 'I know what I did was stupid. But I'm sure as hell not sorry for doing it, Lukas. To be fair, I'd rather you alive, telling me how stupid I am and rolling your eyes at me than being… you know.' He traced Lukas' taped up eyebrow with his thumb before cupping his scratched cheek. 'I love you too much to let that happen to you...'

Matthias suddenly felt the same urge he had felt that night in the alleyway. It was so overwhelming that he couldn't fight it. So he leant forward and pressed a soft kiss to Lukas' forehead. He heard his breath hitch as he did so and, when he pulled back, he saw Lukas' mouth pressed in a tight line. Then he did something Matthias did not expect: he gave him a royal punch to his shoulder, causing a loud squeak to pass his lips.

' _Ow!_ That hurt—'

'You are the biggest fucking idiot in the history of idiocy. Don't risk your life for me like that ever again, you hear?' Lukas interrupted, his voice dangerously low. Matthias stopped pouting and strained his ears to listen. 'I don't want you in here again. I don't want to see you _crying_ because you're in so much pain. I don't want to see you covered in all that blood…' He trailed off, his voice cracking and his eyes screwing shut.

Matthias' stomach dropped. He really was an idiot… and a selfish one at that. He didn't think about what this would do to Lukas. The poor man must have been through hell and back, being worried sick about him while he had been unconscious, and Matthias could see it in his face. It was clear from the purple bags under his eyes and from the tired, downward curve of his mouth. Matthias felt awful for causing it.

'Oh… god, I'm so sorry,' he told him, swallowing thickly. 'I'm sorry for causing you to go through all that pain…' But he shook his head and frowned deeply. Caressing Lukas' cheekbone, Matthias rested his forehead against his and said, 'But I am _not_ sorry for saving your life, Lukas.'

A pregnant pause fell between them, which gave Matthias the time to think. He tried to put himself in Lukas' shoes, to try and imagine what he would have done if something did happen to him. He shuddered inwardly at the thought of him dead, his body covered in blood and his limbs stuck at awkward angles, with his eyes staring vacantly at him, glazed over. If there was one thing Matthias had learnt from all this it was that Lukas was extremely important to him. He loved him more than anyone else and knew him better than anyone else he knew. He couldn't imagine a life without him in it, and that kiss they shared the other night was something he wanted to do again and again.

And Matthias thought it was high time Lukas knew that.

Swallowing thickly, Matthias prepared himself for a confession of a lifetime. _If he hates you, he hates you… but he needs to know the truth._

'Can't you see, Lukas?' he mouthed, staring at him sincerely. 'I'd die if you were gone from my life... cheesy as that is, but I mean it. Fuck, we've known each other since we were kids! You mean way too much to me… more than you know. I don't wanna lose any of that. I wouldn't know what to do with myself if you were gone, you know? You're the most… amazing human being I have ever known and I'd _never_ have forgiven myself if I had let you die.'

 **.**

At Matthias' little speech, Lukas felt his heart skip a beat. He knew that Matthias had a way with words when he felt like it, but he had not been anticipating _that_. He studied his façade and was alarmed to see that he was dead serious. He hadn't seen Matthias be this earnest and solemn since they were teenagers.

He didn't know what to think. But as he looked at Matthias, taking in his glassy eyes and the slight quirk of his lips, he knew exactly what to do. He found himself feeling bold, as bold as Matthias had been that night when they kissed, and this boldness made him feel resolute about his next decision, a decision he wished he had made much earlier.

So Lukas, mindful of the fine tubing, grabbed Matthias' face and sealed their mouths in a kiss.

Suddenly, all his dreams of kissing Matthias were put into the darkness as the reality set in. Matthias' lips were rough against his own, but the feeling sent his mind reeling nevertheless. Keeping one hand rested on Matthias' cheek, Lukas trailed the other one into the mass of golden hair, gripping it in his grasp. He almost started crying again when he felt Matthias move with him, pouring his love into their kiss as his hand brushed up Lukas' back. It wasn't a desperate, desire-driven joint: it was careful, raw but tender, fervent but delicate. Lukas felt his heart swell in size.

When they parted, he saw Matthias' eyes gleam with joy, and his mouth stretch into an enormous grin. He captured Lukas' lips again. This time it was slightly more passionate and Lukas gave himself up wholeheartedly. It was better than he ever dreamed it to be. _Finally. Finally I have this dork as my own._

Rubbing his freckled nose with Lukas', Matthias' face grew momentarily thoughtful. 'You know, when I get out of this bed, I'm gonna give you a proper kiss,' he said seriously. 'One where I can actually hold you.'

Lukas, for the first time that evening, broke out a smile.

'I'll hold you to that,' he said, kissing Matthias once again. 'It better be good.'

Breaking apart, Matthias beamed wickedly. He waggled his eyebrows at Lukas and sang, 'So you _do_ love me after all! Does this mean we're the awesome superhuman boyfriend duo?'

Rolling his eyes, Lukas groaned loudly and Matthias laughed, but not before seizing Lukas' mouth with his again.

* * *

 _ **To be continued...**_


	14. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Himaruya Hidekazu. The plot of this AU belongs to myself and theartisserie.**

* * *

 _"_ _Be careful of what you tell others. It may just come back to bite you."_

 **o**

The hospital discharged Matthias almost a week after the incident. The first week of October had almost passed by and the doctors had made sure to keep Matthias for that period of time, given the nature of the disaster and the condition that he had been in when he had arrived. Matthias hadn't been particularly keen to stay, but after what had seemed like an age, he was glad to be finally heading home. He had gotten sick of being an invalid, lying on his stomach and wincing every time a nurse took a stitch out of his back. And there had been many of them.

One thing he couldn't complain about, however, was Lukas' presence throughout the whole thing. He had somehow charmed a few nurses into letting him stay beyond the required visiting hours, where he had remained by Matthias' side during his time in hospital. Lukas hadn't been his only visitor though: Emil, Tino and Berwald—even Ludwig and Gilbert—had managed to sneak off campus before their classes to see if he was alright, and both his parents, along with Lukas' mother, came to give him the lecture of a lifetime.

'What on earth were you thinking?', 'You could have died!' and 'What were you doing in that part of town?' were only some of the things he heard from them. He had tried to tell them what had happened without giving away the real reason why they were there. While he had appreciated their visits and their concern, they always somehow managed to leave him behind with a splitting headache. Matthias loved them, he truly did, but they certainly knew how to put him on the spot and make him flustered.

As he followed Lukas up the stairs to the dormitory on the fourth floor, Matthias couldn't be happier to have returned home. It was a relief when they finally made it to their room, and after Lukas had opened the door, they went in and Matthias smiled.

'I'm going to make us something to eat,' said Lukas, heading straight for the kitchen after he had placed Matthias' bag of clothes by the door and taken off his shoes.

Matthias grinned in response, then let out a long sigh. After Lukas had disappeared fully into the kitchen, Matthias let loose the yawn he had been holding back and blinked blearily. Despite having done nothing but lie on his stomach and sleep for the past couple of days, Matthias still felt extremely tired. His muscles were aching dully, and if he moved too much, his back protested with spikes of pain shooting across the skin.

'I'm just gonna head to the bathroom, okay?' he called out to Lukas, who replied with a short sound.

Entering the bathroom, Matthias's eyes landed on their mirror and he grimaced at what stared back at him. In the past, considering how intense his conflicts were out on the streets, he had always gotten bad scrapes and bruises. But as he tilted his head to get a better look at the grazes on his jaw and the stained patch on his forehead, he scowled.

 _That's going to leave a scar,_ he thought, his eyes focusing on his forehead. _Not that I have that many already, I mean really._ Looking closer, his eyebrows rose into his hairline when he noticed a significant amount of stubble lining his cheeks, jaw and neck.

'Holy shit, I need to _shave_ ,' he said loudly, grabbing his chin and angling his head to see himself better.

He heard Lukas snort from the kitchen. 'Nah, keep it. You look less like an idiot and more like a man.'

'Yeah, yeah, really funny, Luke,' Matthias grumbled as Lukas laughed loud enough for him to hear. Rolling his eyes, he paused as he felt something move on his forehead. Looking in the mirror again, he saw that the medical tape that was holding the patch on the wound on his forehead had started to lose its stickiness. Both corners of one piece were curling inwards and the other was beginning to lift from his skin. Frowning, Matthias gently peeled the bits of tape off and took off the stained patch, chucking everything into the bin. He pulled a face at the inflamed flesh, red and bleeding, and huffed heavily.

 _Great._

Slowly bending down as to not put too much pressure on his back, Matthias took out their first-aid kit from under the sink and placed it on the edge of the porcelain bowl. _Shit, I feel like an old man,_ he thought as he took out a bottle of antiseptic, a bag of cotton balls and a fresh patch to replace the one he had had. _I hope these aches go away soon… I'm too young to feel old!_

After he put some antiseptic onto a clean cotton ball, Matthias moved some stubborn hair that had fallen into his eyes away before pressing onto the wound. He let out a soft grunt at the sting and blew out a short breath, before proceeding to dab at it again.

'Matthias?'

Matthias glanced up to see, in the reflection of the mirror, Lukas standing in the doorway. There was disapproval in his gaze, and Matthias watched as he walked up to him and gently prised the bloodied cotton ball from his fingers. He commanded with his eyes for Matthias to turn around and face him, and once he did, Lukas took a fresh cotton ball, applied antiseptic and pressed it softly on the wound. Matthias tried not to cringe at the dash of pain, and instead, focused his attention on Lukas' face.

He was taken back to the time when he had found out about the others' superpowers and a smile broke out. He remembered the determined look Lukas had on his face then, and it matched the one he currently had. His fingers were just as gentle, just as tender and loving as they had been that night and Matthias couldn't help but melt at his touch.

'Can you bend down a little? You're too tall,' Lukas muttered.

Matthias did bend down, but he also bumped their noses together. Grinning hugely at the surprised look on Lukas' face, Matthias captured his lips with his briefly before pulling back.

'Y-You…' Matthias blushed at the flustered expression Lukas had. 'Bloody dork.'

He laughed. 'But of course, Luke—I'm the King of Dorkdom!'

Lukas stiffened, but smiled softly. 'Get back here so I can fix your head, moron.'

'Yes, sir!'

They spent the next couple of moments in silence as Lukas quickly disinfected Matthias' wound and patched it up as neatly as he could. Matthias, in the meantime, watched him do his work with a dopey smile on his face. He still couldn't quite believe that it was finally happening… he and Lukas were together.

 _Together._

Lukas was his _boyfriend._ _He_ was _Lukas' boyfriend._

He was so unbelievably happy that his smiles became just a little bit larger, his laughter a little bit louder, his touches a little bit more tender, and his love for Lukas just that little bit deeper. While he had been in hospital, Matthias had constantly pinched himself to make sure he hadn't been dreaming, that the looks of love that Lukas had sent his way were genuine, and that the secret kisses they had exchanged when it was just them in his room were real. He had more often than not simply ghosted his fingers over the backs of Lukas' hands to test the waters, to see how Lukas would react to his actions. His heart had always sped up and leaped and jumped for joy when Lukas' fingers curled around his and when he was greeted with the sight of a curve at one corner of his mouth.

As Lukas dumped the dirtied cotton balls and the excess packaging of the bandage into the bin by the door, Matthias checked out his handiwork in the mirror.

'Ah! Good as new!' He smiled hugely. 'You're the best, Luke.'

Lukas' lips quirked into a half smile and he looked at Matthias through the glass as he washed his hands. 'I know I am. That's why we're friends, _nei?_ '

'Amongst other things, obviously,' Matthias said factually, and he wrapped his arms around Lukas' stomach. He rested his chin on his shoulder and whispered in his ear, 'Now… I believe I made you a promise… and I intend to fulfil it.'

Lifting his gaze to the mirror, Matthias watched as Lukas' cheeks undertook a deep red hue and as his eyes sparked with intrigue. Matthias was, of course, referring to the promise he had made in the hospital room after he had woken up. He had been waiting to do it for the past week since he had been admitted and now that they were home, he couldn't have found a better opportunity to do so. Lukas spun around in his hold and rested his forearms on Matthias' shoulders. His wet hands hung away from their bodies so they wouldn't dampen their clothes.

'Well… what are you waiting for?' he said in a low voice. 'I've waited a week for this, after all.'

Matthias answered by smirking and pressing his lips firmly against Lukas'. He brought him closer by hugging him tighter and deepened their kiss by tilting his head to get a better angle. His heart jumped at the breathy sigh Lukas made and as his arms strengthened their hold around his neck. Matthias trailed a hand up his back, around to lightly graze his neck before his fingers danced along the line of his jaw and settled on his cheek.

Pulling away gently, Matthias watched as Lukas kept his eyes closed for a few seconds before opening them and locking onto Matthias'. Their dark colour swirled with what Matthias could only label as love, as content and as satisfaction.

'How did I do?' Matthias asked him, eyes focused on his flushed face.

Lukas gave him a slight, gratified smile. 'It was good,' he whispered, and Matthias saw a hint of mischief rise within the navy. 'But I could do with another one.'

Matthias grinned wickedly, told him, 'It would be my pleasure,' and sealed their mouths in a hungry, passionate and desperate kiss. Lukas seemed to forget about his damp hands for they ran through Matthias' hair, bringing their faces closer. Matthias felt himself being steered backwards, out of the bathroom and into the living room. Lukas' mouth was hot against his own and his teeth tickled his lower lip and his breath was warm against the pink skin. Matthias' hand cradled the back of Lukas' neck, slanting his head downwards gently so he could kiss him fuller, deeper, harder…

His palms settled on Lukas' hips and their foreheads came at a rest against each other as they paused for air. Matthias ran the tip of his nose along the lines of Lukas' features, starting with his nose and trailing down to his jaw, where he happily buried his cheek between the prominent line and his shoulder. He pressed a kiss behind his ear and gripped him tighter as he moved his head back to stare at him.

'I love kissing you…'

'Hm… and hugging me, and picking me up as well,' Lukas finished off. 'I should file a complaint, you know.'

Matthias raised a mocking eyebrow, but played along with Lukas' comment. 'And what would this complaint include, Luke?'

'Harassment and clinginess, obviously,' he replied as he ran his fingers through Matthias' hair. 'You should be ashamed of yourself. You're incredibly touchy.'

Going towards his ear again, Matthias said quietly into it, 'I don't see you complaining now… in fact, you're rather enjoying it!'

Chuckling softly, Lukas muttered, 'No… I wouldn't have a very strong case, would I?' before he backed Matthias into the wall and captured his lips again. When his back met the hard surface suddenly, Matthias winced and let out a hiss at the pain that went across it. The skin was still tender and raw, and Matthias had to be careful about what he could do with it. He could sleep on his back, but that was all he could do at that stage.

Lukas looked at him in concern, the fiery passion he had in his gaze vanishing. 'Did I hurt you?'

Matthias shook his head. 'Nah, it's fine… just a bit sore.'

He resisted the urge to whine when Lukas moved away, taking away the warmth he provided. He held Matthias' face in his palms and gazed solemnly at him while his eyes raked over his features.

'You need rest,' Lukas scolded lightly. 'You can't do too much just yet.'

Matthias pouted, but then said seriously when a thought came to mind, 'I'll rest _only_ if you rest, too.'

Lukas sent him a strange look. 'I don't need rest. _I'm_ not the one who almost got blown up being the hero.'

Taking one of his hands from his cheek, Matthias squeezed it softly as he said, 'You look dead on your feet. I know you haven't been sleeping well for the past week. Just… take a break, okay? Please?' He sent him a pleading expression, his eyes wide and hopeful.

Blushing at the sight and sighing, Lukas nodded before responding with, 'Only because I know you won't leave me alone until I do,' as Matthias led him to his room. Matthias merely smiled, yet inwardly, he let out a joyous cheer.

But he had not been joking when he had said that Lukas didn't appear well. It was almost as if Lukas had been the one in hospital and not him. He was a lot paler than usual, there were heavy bags under his eyes and whenever he thought Matthias wasn't looking, he was yawning and struggling to stay awake.

Entering his room, Matthias let go of Lukas' hand and crawled on top of the sheets of his bed. _Ah, bed… I have missed you_ , he thought as he happily snuggled his cheek into his pillow. Noticing the absence of an extra weight on his bed, Matthias lifted his head and saw Lukas standing awkwardly at the edge.

'What are you doing standing there? Come lie down!'

Lukas gazed at him for a second longer before he slowly sank down onto the edge of the mattress. His back was towards Matthias, and he saw his chance. In one fluid movement, Matthias had wrapped his arms around Lukas' waist and was pressing his cheek into the lower half of Lukas' spine. He felt him stiffen in his hold and his breath hitch.

'What are you doing?'

'Hugging you,' Matthias told him, his voice muffled from Lukas' shirt.

'Well, would you mind if you… you know, don't?' Lukas groused. Matthias could hear the blush he had on his face in his tone.

'No, I don't actually. You're fun to hug… and now that we're together, I don't need to have an excuse to do it!'

'Okay, that's all well and good,' Lukas muttered, 'but how am I supposed to rest with you when you're hogging the entire bed and won't let me go?'

'Fine,' Matthias said dramatically, letting go and rolling over and landing on his stomach on his side of the bed. He watched as Lukas rigidly made himself comfortable against the pillows, crossing his ankles and placing his hands on his stomach. Matthias smiled inwardly at his awkwardness, and he broke it by moving towards him and pecking his lips.

'There's no need to feel so awkward, Luke,' he told him as he laid on his back carefully. 'We've shared a bed plenty of times before, and please… just stop for a while. You honestly look like you're about to drop from exhaustion.' He grunted when he felt a wet patch on his pillow. 'And look, you've made my hair all wet.'

A fine eyebrow made its way upwards as Lukas raised it. 'Oh? And how is it you know all this is the case, Matthias? And sorry, that's not my problem now.'

Matthias sent him a little glare and shrugged. 'I just know.'

'I thought I was the one with the ambiguous answers,' said Lukas.

Matthias grinned. 'I learnt from the best,' he told him matter-of-factly, pressing a kiss to his jaw.

Lukas kept his eyebrow raised at him. 'Is that so? But you know, Matt, while we're on the topic of resting… I know I'm not the only one who hasn't been sleeping well lately.'

That made Matthias freeze. He let out a discomfited chuckle and said, 'What are you talking about?'

But Lukas didn't appear to hear him, or if he did, he ignored him for what he said next made Matthias' mouth dry. 'When did the nightmares start?'

Matthias panicked. _Oh god… how much does he know? He can't know, I haven't told him! I haven't told anybody! No one can know…_ He tried to laugh the question off as if it was the most ridiculous thing Lukas had ever asked him.

'Nightmares? I don't get nightmares, Luke. I am way too cool for that—'

'You were crying.' Matthias stopped and stared at Lukas blankly. 'That night… after the whole alleyway thing… You rarely cry. I heard you. You were tossing and turning and on the verge of a complete meltdown. You said my name,' he added as an afterthought. 'Was I making you do something? Did something happen?' He paused. 'Was I leaving you or something? Because you know, I wouldn't—'

'You died.'

The onslaught of questions died in Lukas' throat at Matthias' blunt statement. A silence fell over them and Matthias found it hard to swallow as he stared at the ceiling. The content of the nightmare came flooding back and suddenly everything that had happened over the past week was plunged into darkness as Matthias relived the nightmare he had experienced. It often happened after a particularly bad bout of terrors, and Matthias hated it most in the world. He felt hopeless whenever what happened in his dreams came back to him, and he could do nothing but submit.

He spoke to Lukas in a trance, describing it to him. He told him about how they were always fighting against someone, sometimes with Emil, sometimes with Tino and Berwald, sometimes with all three of them. Each night had seen a different outcome for the five of them, but whenever someone died in the dream, it had always been Lukas. He was either shot or hit by something, and Matthias, strangely, never saw the broken state of his body afterwards. Everything was in slow motion, Lukas reeling backwards with a gunshot wound to the heart, or some other kind of injury. His eyes were wide and unseeing, and Matthias never failed to see the life be extinguished from them. He never failed to cry out and reach for the hands that were moving away from him, though open and desperate to be grasped. He told Lukas about how there was constantly so much blood on himself and everyone else, but never as much as there was on him when he died. He also told Lukas that whenever he died, the dream changed or he woke up sobbing.

'The nightmares started around the end of last month,' he said softly, fighting back tears. 'They haven't stopped since. I don't know where they've come from but they seem to get worse every night… but that night was particularly awful. Maybe it was because you rejected me so harshly—and you had every right to, don't get me wrong—but yeah… that nightmare was the worst one so far…'

Breathing in deeply, Matthias turned his head to face Lukas. He found Lukas staring back at him, his eyes focused on him and his lips pressed together so tightly Matthias wondered if he'd be able to speak again. But speak he did when he opened his mouth and let out a low, unintelligible grumble.

'How long have we known each other, Matthias?'

Blinking, Matthias answered immediately, 'Fifteen years now. What's that got to do with anything?'

'Everything.' Lukas sat up and glared down at Matthias' quizzical expression. 'During those fifteen years, what did we do after we had a nightmare? Be it when we were over at each other's houses or when we were alone?'

Mirroring Lukas' previous action, Matthias crossed his legs and placed his hands in his lap. He licked his lips before saying, 'We'd tell each other about it, or at least say that we had one if we didn't want to say what was in it.'

' _Ja,_ exactly.' Lukas' eyes flashed in anger. 'Why didn't you tell me about all this before?'

Matthias sent him a serious look and said in a tone that oozed obviousness, 'Because I didn't want to burden you with my stupid problems. You have enough on your plate as it is.'

He scoffed. 'You're an idiot.' He grabbed one of Matthias' hands and held it tightly. 'As dumb as you are sometimes, your problems are not a burden. How much shit have I unloaded onto you the past couple of years? I always knew you'd listen and that you'd be there for me… But I want to remind you that it works both ways, meaning that you start talking to me from now on, is that clear?'

Matthias was suddenly pulled towards him until their noses were almost touching. Lukas' eyes roved over his features, landing on his eyes, his nose and lastly his lips. He joined them and his lips together in a delicate kiss, and Matthias couldn't help but allow his lids to flutter shut and kiss softly back. Pulling away, Lukas kept his gaze on Matthias as he made himself comfortable against the headboard of the bed and patted his leg. When all Matthias did was send him a confused look, he rolled his eyes and yanked Matthias' arm, causing him to land unceremoniously in his lap. Matthias shifted until his head was resting on Lukas' thigh comfortably.

Lukas looked down at him gravely. 'I'm not going anywhere,' he whispered. His fingers disappeared into the spiky mass of hair on Matthias' head. 'You have nothing to be scared of… okay? It will take a lot for me to die.'

Matthias gave him a watery smile, nodded and proceeded to hug his waist once again. He nuzzled his face into his stomach and simply let a relaxed hush envelop them. He hadn't realised just how much he needed to hear that from him… and just how much he needed someone to hold him and tell him that it was all okay. He felt slightly better about the whole ordeal.

 _He's so warm…_ Matthias thought as he laid in Lukas' lap. His stomach radiated heat, and the hands that ran through his hair and that rested on his shoulder seeped the sensation through his shirt. The warmth was so soothing that Matthias found himself beginning to nod off. _Maybe if I just rest my eyes for a few moments… he's so comfy, after all… and warm… and he smells good, too…_

But Matthias' desire to sleep was interrupted when there was a loud series of knocks on their front door. As a reaction, they split from each other immediately, their fingers going to their hair to fix it and to their clothes to get rid of any noticeable creases. They both stood from Matthias' bed and wordlessly checked each other over for any misconceptions in their appearances. Matthias gave Lukas a thumbs up after he moved a few strands of wayward hair from his forehead and straightened his clip. Lukas ran his hands through Matthias's hair, restyling it to its usual grandeur, before kissing him roughly once more, smoothing the collar of Matthias' shirt out and backing away.

'You go first,' Matthias told him. 'So they don't see you coming out of here… or to get any ideas, you know.'

Lukas nodded once, then left Matthias' room to answer the door. Matthias breathed out in relief and ran his clammy palms on his thighs. It might have been silly what he and Lukas had just done, but they wanted to keep their little secret escapades… well, secret. Lukas had been adamant on keeping their relationship under tabs for a while, and Matthias had been more than glad to do so. He wanted to keep Lukas for himself just for a bit before they announced to everyone that they were a couple, not to mention that Lukas was feeling shy about telling other people about them. It wasn't that he was ashamed to be with Matthias, he knew that for sure. It was simply because he wouldn't know how to act around the others if they knew about them then and there, and that he wanted to take things slow, which Matthias understood completely and agreed with wholeheartedly.

He still couldn't wrap his head around the whole thing. It had taken him fifteen years to realise his love for Lukas, but now that it was a thing, he felt giddy with joy. Just the thought of being able to kiss Lukas with no qualms, to hold him and tell him how much he loved him, was enough to make his head spin. But when he heard voices coming into their dormitory, Matthias shook his head to free it from his thoughts and walked out of his bedroom.

What he saw when he entered the living room was Lukas leading their guests from the hallway, who just happened to be none other than—

'Hey, look what the cat dragged in!' Emil cried, grinning broadly.

Matthias rolled his eyes, albeit with a smile on his face, and walked up to Emil to give him a soft punch in the arm. 'Yeah, fuck you, Emil. I'm still way more attractive than you.'

'Ha, you wish!'

'It's good to see you up and about, Matt!' Tino greeted, grinning broadly. 'You had us worried, you know.'

'I'm sorry,' Matthias told him. 'But I'm okay now!'

'Good to see you, Matt,' was Berwald's greeting and Matthias winked at him. Then the three of them exchanged a brief look before they launched themselves on Matthias, enveloping him in a three way hug. Emil was the first to get to him, wrapping his arms around his torso, closely followed by Tino, who hugged Emil as well as Matthias. Berwald settled for a sort of one-armed hug but ruffled Matthias' hair to compensate. Matthias had to remind them through gritted teeth that his back was still sore, but their attempt to lighten their embrace did little to help. However, Matthias felt happy and he hugged them back as hard as he could. When they parted, Matthias grinned at the cheerful façades of his friends.

'So other than coming to see my gorgeous face, what are you guys doing here?' he asked them as they all made themselves comfortable. Matthias noticed instantly that everyone was sitting in the same spots as they did that night two weeks ago, when they had been treating each other's wounds: Berwald and himself were on the couch, Lukas was in the armchair next to Matthias, and Tino and Emil had stolen chairs from their kitchen table and were sitting across from Lukas.

'Well… we didn't want to bombard you while you were in hospital,' Tino began, 'but we wanted to tell you what we learnt from Arthur that night.'

Time seemed to stop at the mention of Arthur. Matthias felt his blood grow cold and his brain click onto alert.

'Yeah, I was wondering about that…' Lukas said softly, looking at Tino sincerely. 'So what's the news?'

Tino scoffed bitterly and shook his head. 'Honestly? Nothing much. Considering we were there for almost two hours, he told us very little.'

'He was more interested in us than he was in revealing information,' Emil continued, crossing his arms. 'He wanted to be sure that we knew Gilbert and Ludwig, so we had to prove to him that we knew them by giving him the slip of paper they gave us. And he was also curious about us as supers.'

'He wanted to see us do a few things,' Berwald added. 'So Emil showed him his speed and I turned into the coffee table, basically.'

'I couldn't exactly prove to him that I had super senses,' Tino elaborated, 'but I did show him a few moves and he… well, he seemed to be impressed.'

'But that's not the main thing here,' Emil went on. 'He did give us his word—not physical evidence, unfortunately—that the Rogue Assassin does indeed work for one of the two mafia gangs. But as if his word will get us anywhere, I mean—'

'Sorry, Emil but can you wait one second? Just… hold on…' Everyone's attention turned to Berwald, whose gaze was fixed on the television that was playing silently in the background. 'That's Arthur there, isn't it?'

Locking his eyes onto the screen, Matthias saw an older face of a man talking seriously into a multitude of microphones. He was wearing a sleek, black business suit, and had a mop of blond hair on his head. What was mostly prominent about his features were his thick eyebrows, serious gaze and thinned mouth. He was standing in front of the main city hall, with several larger men standing guard in the background.

'Matt, the remote is closest to you, can you turn it up?' Lukas asked him. Obliging, Matthias turned up the volume, and a loud, clear and sharply accented tone filled the space.

 _'_ _What happened last week has left this city rattled. There has been irrefutable damage done, which both alarms me and saddens me. This is clearly the work of precarious people, whose intentions are, at this stage, unknown. However, I wish to put the people of this city at ease. I am aware of those victims who are currently being treated in the hospital, and I send my sincere condolences and wish you all the speediest of recoveries, because I assure you... I, with the help of the government, will make sure this city is rebuilt to become stronger, more durable to attacks such as these, and I will - no matter the consequences - apprehend those responsible for Wednesday's disaster. I am also aware of the people's—all of you of this city—fear of the creatures that live amongst us. It is possible that these "supers" are the ones who initiated the attack. But do not worry, my fellow citizens - they shall pay for what has occurred. That is a promise.'_

At the end of Arthur's speech, he was bombarded with questions from the other reporters on the scene. Matthias switched off the television soon after the newsreader filled the screen. He was too confused at what he had just heard, and it seemed he wasn't the only one either.

'Wait… _what?_ '

'That doesn't make any sense!' Tino cried. 'He told us that he was working with us… that he was on our side and everything! Why would he tell the public that we were responsible for the attacks?'

'Hey, you have to admit, he was pretty dodgy,' Emil said to him. 'He was secretive as hell, and he only seemed to be interested in us as supers, not in us catching criminals…'

'This is just adding fuel to the fire, though,' Lukas pitched in. 'What could be the reason behind all this?'

Standing up from his spot on the couch, Matthias turned to the others, who looked at him due to his sudden movement.

'I think it's time we had another chat with Ludwig, don't you?'

* * *

 ** _To be continued..._**


	15. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Himaruya Hidekazu. The plot of this AU belongs to myself and theartisserie.**

* * *

 _"_ _By the pricking of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes"—William Shakespeare's_ Macbeth

 **o**

Arthur Kirkland felt his eyebrow twitch in annoyance. The little room was silent, the people in it not daring to say a word. He knew that they were afraid of angering him, and they were right to be. Arthur was anything but pleased at what had happened last Wednesday night.

There were six men sitting at the table, including himself, their faces showing a range of ages. All of them, other than Arthur, were looking either down at their shoes or someplace else on the table. Arthur stared at each of them in turn and let out a short sound. He never would have thought that he would be in alliance with _any_ of them, yet there he was, sitting amongst them as their leader, their main instigator, in what was going to be one hell of an operation.

'Gentlemen,' he began, clasping his hands together in front of him. 'I hope you all understand the graveness of the situation that has occurred and why we have met here tonight.'

A snort came from the furthest end of the table, and Arthur glowered at one of the younger members. He dragged on his cigarette, the smoke around his mouth billowing out like a dragon's smoking anger. His expression was one of sarcasm, of cynicism, and Arthur wanted nothing more than to give him a good punch in the nose.

'To be honest, _señor,_ I don't really see why we all have to be here,' he said, dark eyebrows furrowed. 'While this is, as you say, a "grave situation", it is clear that _my_ men had nothing to do with this. We would have executed the job much more smoothly.'

'What's to say that you didn't do it as revenge for someone almost killing your man, Antonio? And the fact that he's been captured by the police?' Sadik, a big Turkish man, grumbled out. 'It would make sense with the sporadic positioning.'

'Thomas made his own choices,' Antonio replied, snuffing out his cigarette in a nearby ashtray. 'He got too confident… perhaps this end is good for him. But we cannot risk him leaking information. He knows too much about all of us in this room.' He sent Sadik a glare. 'And I wouldn't risk the lives of the entire city as some kind of revenge plot for a little thing as that! No… this wasn't by my hand—maybe it was by yours!'

Sadik let out a gasp of indignation. 'How dare you insult my honour? You Spanish punk, come over 'ere so I can teach you some manners!'

' _Manners?_ ' Antonio laughed shortly. 'You're one to talk, you _hijo de puta!_ I'll show you manners!'

'Don't use strange words at me, you bastard! You know what, I'm changing my statement: come 'ere so I can teach you some manners—with my fist in your face!'

'And you call _me_ a punk? Why are we allies? You are a good for nothing, middle-aged man with an ego so fucking large you need an entire house to hold it!'

' _Middle-aged? Why you—'_

Arthur slammed his fist on the table, the sound causing the bickering to come to an end. 'That is quite enough,' he growled, his eyes ablaze. 'Are we civilised men or are we like those savages who have the audacity to ruin our city?'

A snarl came from the other end of the table. 'Oh, savages now are we? Gee, you're full of compliments lately, aren't you?'

His eyes fell on the youngest member of the party, whose face was contorted in a heavy scowl. Arthur raised his eyebrows in surprise, even more so when he saw the blue eyes flash angrily behind his glasses.

'What's the meaning behind that, huh?' he said, staring intensely at Arthur. 'First you put the blame on us for the bombings, and now you call us savages? God… You're a jerk.'

Gazing at the teenager, Arthur allowed his words to sink in. It was true. He hadn't been as kind to the superhumans lately as he had been in the past. It was because of him that they were able to make so much noise and not be captured by the authorities in the first place. Taking in the younger male, Arthur remembered when he had picked up the sorrowful boy on the pier a few months ago. His youthful brain had been full of ideas, revenge and such hatred that Arthur didn't know what to do with it all. But he had potential to change the city, and quite possibly the world.

Arthur leant backwards in his seat and studied the boy's face. 'My boy, you must understand—'

'My name is Alfred,' he hissed through his teeth, 'and I am not your boy! You promised me change the first time we met, a better change for all of us supers against the government. Now you've added fuel to the fire by blaming our kind for this attack! How are we supposed to move forward when we're constantly taking two steps backwards? I mean—'

'Perhaps if you let me explain, you'll know,' Arthur interrupted.

Alfred frowned deeply at him. He looked at the man sitting next to him, a long-time friend of his according to one of Arthur's sources. He was a small man, Asian in appearance, and didn't seem to have much of a presence. But Arthur knew just how dangerous he was. He had seen the man in action, and his ability scared him to his wit's end. Not that he'd admit it to anyone.

The pair seemed to have a mental debate of sorts before Alfred sniffed and sighed out, 'Fine.'

For the first time that day, Arthur smiled. He sent a grateful look towards Alfred's friend before breathing in deeply.

'Do you remember what I said to you once we started walking from the pier the day I met you?' he began, keeping an eye on the other members of the meeting. They were observing what was happening with a curious gaze and Arthur found himself feeling satisfied with the calmer ambience.

Alfred nodded. 'Yeah, you said that everything happens for a reason and that we'd be stupid if we tried to change it.'

'Exactly. Now, we can see quite clearly that the government has something against your kind. So what better way to get them to notice you than to make a little noise? This is set in motion, Alfred— _all_ of these things we are doing now… some of them may seem ridiculously stupid and _wrong_ to do. But look at the bigger picture!' He allowed himself a smile. 'The universe has put these events into place—events we cannot change—that will allow us to succeed. I having told the officials that you supers were behind the bombing attacks will make the government more aware. They will listen to you, treat you more cautiously in case you do something like this again, something that will put them at risk, as well as the city. Do you follow me?'

Wrinkling his nose, Alfred nodded and said, 'Yeah… I think so.'

'Think of this like gambling, Alfred. We either put in everything we have and take a risk, letting fate take us in its desired path—or we sit back and do nothing and let everything overwhelm us and continue to make our lives a misery.

'And we shall say that… Wednesday's mission went well, albeit with a slight hiccup,' he continued, grimacing at the thought. 'The government is guarded. They're afraid, and all we have to do is cause a little more of the same problem for them before they start to take us seriously! This is only the beginning, gentlemen.'

'Kirkland-san, if I may interrupt?'

Arthur transferred his gaze to Alfred's companion, and looked at him curiously. 'Yes, Kiku?'

Kiku appeared uncomfortable, and he hesitated before saying, 'I'm afraid things are not quite that simple…'

The smile that had been growing on Arthur's face vanished instantly, and he leant forward in his seat in order to study Kiku's discomfited façade more closely. 'What do you mean by that?'

Shooting an alarmed look at Alfred—who urged him with his eyes to continue—Kiku swallowed and said in a soft tone, 'It's about what happened with the bombings… You see, we—that is, Alfred-kun and I—have a rogue.'

'A rogue? A rogue what, exactly?' Everyone's eyes landed on the man sitting on Arthur's left. He peered at Kiku over the top of his nose, his lips curled around the mouthpiece of his smouldering pipe. 'I hope you're not insinuating that one of your members has gone to the police.'

'No! Nothing like that, Janssen-san,' Kiku said quickly. 'It's the girl. She… has a mind of her own. We tried to control her, to get her back to normal but… she's hopelessly gone.'

'Is this the girl you took from the university?' Antonio asked him, eyes sparking with intrigue.

Kiku nodded once before continuing. 'She was responsible for the extra bombs. She got it into her head that she needed to _kill_ people in order to make the government see sense. She is passionate about our cause, but she's uncontrollable… and we fear she may do something that could potentially ruin our future plans.'

'And to top all that off,' Alfred pitched in, his voice louder than anyone else's, as per usual, 'she's gone missing.'

Arthur let out a resigned sigh. _Things are never going to go smoothly with this lot, are they?_

'Do we have any idea where she could be?' Sadik asked the superhumans.

They both shook their heads and Arthur felt his eyebrow twitch in irritation once more.

'In that case, there's really not much we can do at the moment, is there? All you can do is keep a close eye on her and report to me if something is to go sidewards again. But let's move on, we're running out of time. What's the news on your front, Antonio?' Arthur aimed at him. 'How did the conference go?'

Antonio sighed and leant forward on his elbows. 'Not good, I'm afraid. The mafias in the other towns are refusing to get involved in our business. They don't see the benefits of joining forces…' He glanced briefly at Alfred and Kiku. 'And they're not particularly keen on conspiring with supers.'

'Oh, come on, really?' Alfred muttered. 'What do they think we're going to do to them? We're not animals, for fuck's sake.'

'Did you tell them how much they would be earning if they did join with us?' Abel asked Antonio coolly, setting his pipe on the table and blowing out a cloud of smoke.

'It was one of the first things I told them,' he replied. 'They were keen then, but as soon as I told them the details, they backed out. Apparently their reputation is more important than their bank accounts.'

Arthur let out a huff. 'Well. That's it then. We're on our own, gentlemen.'

'Like we needed them anyway,' Alfred grumbled, arms crossed over his chest. 'We're fine without them! We've made way more progress than they have—and we know exactly how to do things 'round here. "Bah humbug" to them.'

'For once, I agree with the kid,' Sadik said, dumping his finished cigar into the ashtray in front of him. 'I never liked the idea of outsiders being a part of our plan. It would have ended messier than I would have liked and besides, we've done things smoothly so far. At least,' he added as an afterthought, ' _most_ of us have. _Some_ of us need to pick up their game.'

'If that's a jibe at me, Sadik, you can stick up your arse,' Antonio growled.

'In a way, he's right, Antonio,' Arthur interrupted as Antonio opened his mouth to initiate yet another argument with Sadik. 'You need to keep your men in check. That stunt they pulled in North Shore a few days ago with those supers resulted in the police coming to the scene and arrests being made, and I won't have any more of that sort of failure.'

Antonio glared at Arthur momentarily before letting out a loud, humourless laugh.

'Funny you say that, _Arthur_ , because as I recall you said to us before we started all this was "make sure that we have all hands on deck and to do anything possible to show the government and the people that we mean business",' he said, fingers drawing quotation marks in the air. 'And for the record, I didn't know about my men being down at North Shore until they came back to headquarters with injuries I had never seen on them before.'

'Yes, I do remember saying that,' said Arthur. 'And regardless of your lack of knowledge on the matter, I distinctly don't remember saying to order your men to try and murder everyone in sight whenever they were out on a mission—or for that matter for _you_ to order assassination attempts.'

At the look of shock that was thrown his way, Arthur smiled inwardly in satisfaction. He had backed Antonio into a corner he couldn't get out of and despite his behaviour, Arthur was more intrigued as to why Antonio had done it in the first place. The other members stared at Antonio in surprise and alarm, and Arthur couldn't fight the smug grin that formed around his mouth.

'I have no idea what you're talking about,' Antonio mumbled. He fished out another cigarette and his hands shook as he lit it between his teeth. 'All my orders have been based on yours, _señor_.'

'Oh?' Arthur leant forwards in his seat and his eyes flashed dangerously. 'So the fact that the police found _your_ man in his cell this morning with his throat slit open is news to you?'

'Wait, what?' Alfred's mouth fell open. 'The Rogue Assassin is _dead?_ '

Arthur ignored his question and, instead, raised an eyebrow at Antonio expectantly. His jade eyes went from person to person, before he sighed in defeat and licked his lips nervously.

'I had to,' he said simply.

'You asshole!' Alfred yelled, his chair flying backwards as he shot upwards, clattering noisily as it landed. 'I still needed him! I needed his help to find that Hungarian bitch I'm looking for! That's why we kidnapped her friend in the first place!'

'He knew too much, Alfred,' Antonio shot at the teenager. 'He overheard one of my men and me taking about this… alliance of ours in my office. He knew the details… and the fact that he was caught by the police _and_ that he risked the lives of my other members meant that he needed to be stopped before he blew this entire thing up, if you'll pardon the phrase.'

He glowered at Alfred. 'And speaking of you using my men, we had a deal. I give you my men to help you with your escapades and your revenge, so as long as they don't find out it's _you_ behind the order _and_ that they don't find out the details! So what the hell was that super of yours doing at the scene at the same time?'

Arthur saw Alfred's face morph into a look of surprise as he picked up his chair and sat in it. 'What are you talking about? None of my members were at North Shore that evening.'

'No?' Antonio stood from his seat and slammed his hands flat on the table. 'That's not how my men told it. Those who hadn't been beaten to unconsciousness describe the events as so: they had seen someone lurking around the edges of the warehouse before the confrontation, watching what was happening inside. At the same time, one of the supers that appeared at North Shore is a Fire Manipulator, and he was using his abilities to trap Thomas in an inferno of some sort. Throughout the conflict, not once had this super displayed actions of homicide. All he did was seriously injure, just as his cohorts were doing.

'Yet… this someone that had been lurking about appeared on the scene, and one of my men watched as they stood a little way away from where this super was doing his thing and lifted his hands to his head, and then all of a sudden, this super was on the verge of killing Thomas. If it hadn't been for his friend knocking him off his course, Thomas would have been dead and this prowler would have been successful. What do you have to say about that?'

As Antonio had spoken, Alfred's face had lost all its colour and his jaw had slackened. Arthur had never seen the boy look so terrified. He exchanged a look with Kiku before whispering, 'Are any of your men able to describe this guy?'

Antonio shook his head. 'No, they didn't get a good look at them. Why?'

Alfred ran his hands through his hair and breathed heavily though his nose. 'What you've described… I know someone who is capable of fucking with people's minds and making them do things against their own will. He's… no longer with me, no longer works for me but… he's dangerous, and he does exactly what you've told me.'

Arthur's eyebrows shot up into his hairline. 'Are you saying we have yet another group of supers against you, Alfred?'

He shrugged. 'Honestly? I don't know. But… I did try the other day to get him to come back. He said he was… what did he say? He said he was now working for someone stronger, someone with better ideas and better strategies than mine. I didn't take him seriously at first… but now it's clear that he was telling the truth.'

'Does this guy have a name?' Sadik asked him, gazing at him curiously. 'He sounds like a piece of work, if you ask me.'

Alfred's expression darkened. 'He does, but I'm not going to tell you what it is. Despite everything we've been through… despite him _hating_ me and us arguing all the damn time, he is someone very important to me. He's perhaps the most important person in my life and I will _never_ rat him out. Ever.'

Arthur took the moment to fully take in everything he had just heard. This business with Antonio's mafia was nothing in comparison to what Alfred had just admitted. When they had met on the pier, Alfred had told him in full confidence that he worked alone, with only a few close confidants, one of which Arthur assumed was Kiku when they had met for the first time. To hear him talk about this person with utmost loyalty in his voice astounded him. But perhaps what shocked him even more was what Kiku whispered to him, though loud enough for everyone to hear.

'You're still in love with him, aren't you?'

Alfred looked at Kiku sharply. 'So what if I am? The jerk is doing this to me on purpose, I know he is. This… attack must be a way of him telling me "fuck you I play by my own rules now". But even then I refuse to hand him in or do anything of the sort.'

'Alfred…' Arthur sighed. 'If this man is dangerous, then he must be stopped. Clearly he's important to you… but what's more important? Him… or your cause?'

The teenager gaped at Arthur in shock and he opened his mouth a few times to say something, but he shut it after a couple of tries and hung his head. Kiku looked sympathetically at him and said, 'I'll tell them his name if you don't want to.'

When all Alfred did was nod, Kiku stared at Arthur straight in the eye.

'His name is Braginski. Ivan Braginski… And he is perhaps one of the most dangerous people we know.'

* * *

 ** _To be continued..._**


	16. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Himaruya Hidekazu. The plot of his AU belongs to myself and theartisserie.**

* * *

 _"_ _Letters are expectations packaged in an envelope." —Shana Alexander_

 **o**

As Antonio went out the door, being the last person to leave, Arthur let out a huge sigh. Their discussion that evening had seen no end or proper outcome. There were hundreds of questions left unanswered and uncompleted plans left scattered upon the meeting table. There were full ashtrays and empty cans of that foul stuff Alfred drank on a regular basis littering the surface amongst the papers.

The only person that remained made himself known by clearing his throat loudly. Arthur turned in time to see Abel striking a match and placing the flame into the chamber of his pipe. He drew in a few breaths, then blew out a column of hazy smoke as he shook the flame out from the match. He sent Arthur a sharp look with one eye.

'I don't know if this is going to work, Arthur,' Abel told him, puffing away at his pipe. 'This is a high risk you're taking here.'

Arthur joined Abel by digging out his packet of cigarettes from his pocket, lighting one between his lips and dragging heavily on it. He sent Abel a sideways glance before returning it to the partially opened door. He did have a point, and Arthur knew the chances he was taking. It was a very dicey situation he had gotten himself into, not to mention that their involvement with both mafias and the superhumans could, in the long term, have dire consequences.

Maybe that was why Arthur was a gambler. He knew what he wanted, what he desperately _needed,_ and he was determined to get it, no matter what the risks were. The worst case scenario would be that he would lose everything he had worked so hard to gain. But the best case scenario… he grinned at the fortunes he could win, the prestige that he would have and the honour that would be bestowed upon him.

But then that was the key: _could_. Abel was right in saying that Arthur was playing the stakes very dangerously and that, in their demise, everything they knew would turn to dust.

'No harm in trying, is there?' he aimed at his companion. Smoke from their mouths surrounded their forms like an opaque mist.

Abel let out a short sound. 'Well, depends on what you mean by harm. If there was anything this meeting brought to light it is that we have dug ourselves an even bigger hole _and_ we have more enemies than we first thought.'

'I'm aware of that, Abel,' Arthur grumbled. 'But we can't give up now. We're committed and we _must_ see this through to the end.'

'Forgive me for speaking out of turn, Arthur, but it needs to be said.' Abel gazed at him seriously. 'This has become more than just a quest for finances and power in the city. This has become an appeasement act. We allying ourselves with not one, but _two_ mafia gangs, _and_ the superhumans is bound to ruin us if all of this goes sideways. We have to be prepared for the worst.'

'Yes, thank you Abel,' Arthur sneered lightly. 'I don't remember paying you for your opinions.'

He let out half-hearted snort. 'They're free of charge. And I didn't realise I was getting paid for my friendship.'

Arthur allowed himself a smile and dragged in a breath of his cigarette. 'I understand the consequences, believe me. But you and I—we've tried every other possible way and look what's happened! Absolutely fucking nothing. We need to play dirty now, old friend. No more Mister Nice Guy.'

'You were never a nice guy, Arthur, let's face it,' Abel butted in, cracking a grin at Arthur's roll of the eyes. 'I've know you too long not to know that.'

Waving a dismissive hand, Arthur blew out yet another curl of smoke. 'You know what I'm insinuating.'

Abel hummed in response and proceeded to sink down into a nearby chair. His long legs stretched out before him, and his ankles crossed as his elbow rested on the surface of the table. He studied Arthur momentarily, as if he was gauging a future reaction from him. Huffing, Arthur muttered, 'Spit it out,' before Abel paused and puffed at his pipe.

'I'm just thinking,' he began, 'about your business with Antonio. Why didn't you tell him the truth? And what haven't you told that boy of yours? The youngster?'

Arthur chuckled. 'You're all technically youngsters compared to me. But you mean Alfred?' He grimaced, set his eyes on the floor and grumbled, 'I have no clue what you're talking about.'

When he lifted his eyes from his leather shoes to Abel's face, he was alarmed to see a wry smirk playing at his lips. He always forgot how astute Abel was, how he could see through Arthur's actions and pick out the truth instantly. Watching him, Arthur swallowed quietly and waited to see what he would say.

'Oh, but you do, Arthur,' Abel said to him, his tone one of insightfulness. 'But I'll be clearer: why didn't you admit to Antonio that it was you behind the order? And what haven't you told Alfred about the _real_ reason for the situation at North Shore?'

Arthur simply stared at Abel for several moments before letting out a quiet chuckle. 'Goodness… you're sharper than I thought you were.'

'I learnt from the best,' he mumbled, gazing steadily at him. 'But please answer my questions and don't take me for a fool.'

'I couldn't take you for a fool even if I wanted to, Abel,' Arthur shot back, frowning deeply. 'You're all too fast for me these days… Ah, if I were young again…'

'All irrelevant.' Abel's eyes glinted. 'Start talking.'

Affronted at Abel's highhandedness, Arthur glowered at him before taking the seat next to him. He crossed his leg over the other and looked at Abel through narrowed eyes as he inhaled another breath of his cigarette.

'I had heard rumours,' he started, putting out the stub in the closest ashtray. 'Chilling stories about a newly formed group of supers. I had overheard Alfred conversing with one of his members—can't remember their name for the life of me—but they were talking about the young woman they had kidnapped from the university. She had suspicions, they said, about two of her friends being supers.'

Pausing, Arthur watched as Abel's expression formed into one of interest. His eyes spelt out the urge for him to continue as his mouth found itself wrapped around the end of his pipe. Arthur obliged, choosing his words carefully.

'She had also said that she is almost certain that one of them has been in frequent contact with criminals, as he always turns up to their lectures with bruises and scratches that weren't there the day before.

'At first I thought that it was rubbish… but then I recalled something one of my sources informed me of, and that was that there had been a confrontation between five supers who had somehow recognised each other by the end of their conflict.

'I became curious. I wanted to see for myself if these assumptions were true and if there was, indeed, a new cohort of supers that we needed to be aware of. So yes, I staged the event at North Shore—I told Thomas that Alfred was going to leave behind a bag of his payment at the shipping dock there, and I also informed him to bring as many of Antonio's men as he could to the scene, just in case.'

Abel frowned deeply at Arthur's speech and puffed absentmindedly at his pipe. 'Okay… but that still doesn't make a lot of sense. Did you know the superhumans would be there?'

'Not exactly.' When Abel looked at him vacantly, Arthur went on. 'I was planning for them to turn up somehow... but it seemed they knew about the whole ordeal in the first place. Yet the only supers I alerted were those two German boys I've been trying to recruit. Which raises the issue: how could those five supers have possibly have known that there was going to be a drop-off? Or the exact whereabouts of the meeting place? That leads me to my next point: Alfred is keeping a lot from me just as much as I am keeping a lot from him.

'I suppose I had always known that Alfred had kept some things secret—such as his enemies, his rivals and so on—but I think it's safe to admit that his… _admission_ of his involvement with the Russian fellow shocked all of us. It just goes to show that he is hiding things.'

'As are you, Arthur,' Abel retorted. 'How many things have you kept hidden over the past few years? It goes without saying that everyone has their secrets, and it appeared Alfred wasn't keen on revealing the identity of his former lover for several reasons.'

'Yes, that is to a large extent true,' Arthur shot back, 'but take into consideration this: another source of mine, who has been tailing Alfred for a couple of weeks now, has mentioned that he has a particular rival, one that has been causing him and his assembly of allies grief since they began making trouble two years ago. I think this rival is the key to figuring out this group of superhumans that have come onto the scene.'

A pregnant pause fell between them as they stared sincerely at each other. Abel then interrupted the quietness by rubbing his temple with his fingertips and murmuring out, 'I'll never understand how your brain works… This is all incredibly circumstantial.'

'Indeed…' Arthur thought for a moment, then said, 'But at least we're getting somewhere, are we not?'

Before Abel could respond, a loud, hearty knock was placed on the door, effectively bringing them out of their discussion. Turning his head towards the entryway, Arthur was surprised to see their visitor obscured by what appeared to be several clothing bags.

'Ah, _bonsoir Monsieur!_ ' a familiar, accented voice sang and Arthur felt his mood sour. 'I am glad I caught you before you left!'

Arthur forced a smile. ' _Francis._ How can I help you?'

Coming into the room fully, a tall, slender man delicately placed the clothing bags on the meeting table and brushed his blond hair out of his eyes. He was young, he was handsome, charismatic, but the one thing that bugged Arthur was that he was _French._ Francis Bonnefoy was an aspiring talent and a useful asset to their cause… but Arthur found him one of the most annoyingly _touchy_ and personal people he had ever known, not to mention he had the ability to send his blood pressure through the roof in a matter of seconds.

He sent Arthur one of his charming smiles, but instead of finding it reassuring, Arthur merely felt the colour drain out of his face. 'It's not so much as to how you can help me, _Monsieur_ Kirkland, but rather how _I_ can help _you_.'

He patted the clothing bags on the table. It took Arthur a short moment to realise what he meant and he nodded in acknowledgement. But he paused when he saw Francis looking around the room in confusion.

'Has everyone gone to the bathroom or something?' he asked, his dark eyes scanning over the empty meeting table.

Arthur sighed. 'No, we ended the meeting early. Everyone has gone home besides us.'

Francis looked disappointed, and Arthur was surprised to see his expression sadden. 'I see… I was hoping to catch him before he left…' His face morphed into one of determination. 'But never mind that! At least I can sort you two out today… I can get the others to come by the workshop another day and fit them then…'

He trailed off and started muttering to himself while he reached for two of the clothing bags. Unzipping one, Francis took out what appeared to be a large, black vest. He looked at it from arms' length and clicked his tongue in approval.

' _Monsieur_ Janssen, this one is yours,' he said to Abel, holding it to out to him with a smile on his face.

Abel, standing from his seat and taking it wordlessly, scanned it briefly before slipping it over his head. Francis went towards him and started fiddling with the pieces of Velcro that lined the thick fabric. Arthur watched in little interest, choosing instead to focus on his fingers and how many cigarettes he had left in his packet.

'It feels comfortable? Not too tight around the shoulders?' he heard Francis asked Abel, who must have shaken his head for Francis let out a joyful, ' _Parfait!_ Then that is yours to keep.'

He turned to Arthur with a large smile on his face. Arthur scowled heavily at him.

'Now for you, _Monsieur_ Kirkland,' he said to him, walking over to the clothing bags and sifting through them once again. Taking one from the bottom of the pile, Francis unzipped it, took out a second vest and walked over to Arthur. 'For you.'

Grimacing at Francis' overly cheerful façade, Arthur also stood up, grabbed the vest and slipped it over his head. When it landed on his shoulders, it was much heavier than he had anticipated and looser around his frame than expected. He watched with a careful eye as Francis circled him, his blue irises fixed on the item of clothing. Francis let out a hum and placed his hands on his hips.

'You're a lot smaller than I thought you were,' he muttered, his fingers dancing over the padded areas on Arthur's shoulder.

'What the bloody hell is that supposed to mean?' Arthur growled loudly, his eyes flashing. 'Are you calling me fat?'

But Francis didn't appear to hear him as he muttered out, 'No matter! The good thing about these vests is that they're…' The sound of Velcro being ripped filled the room and Arthur blew out a short breath as the item suddenly became tighter around his torso and waist. 'Adjustable.'

Glaring heatedly at him, Arthur straightened his back and sniffed. Glancing at Abel, he was astounded to see him fighting a smirk and hiding his mouth behind his hand. Francis moved away and his eyes looked them up and down.

'So, a little explanation,' he said. 'You have noticed that these vests are a little heavier than most other bulletproof vests, _non?_ That's because they're a little sturdier, and therefore not as likely to hurt you when you get hit by a bullet. Yet, that being said, they're more manoeuvrable than most other types and are easier to breathe in. I just hope that they work in… well, whatever it is you're getting yourselves into. I've tried to think of all the variables and made them as effective as possible.'

He patted the other bags on the table with a delicate hand. 'These ones are for Alfred, _Monsieur_ Adnan and An—sorry, _Monsieur_ Carriedo. If you could pass the message on to them to visit me to try them on, it would be much appreciated.'

As he took off the vest, Arthur said to Francis, 'Thank you, Francis. These are exactly what we needed.' As he walked over to the other end of the table to pick up the clothing bag in which the vest came from, Arthur paused as a thought came his way. _I wonder… Perhaps he can help us with this new predicament._

'While you're here, there's something I'd like to ask you,' he aimed at Francis as he and Abel put their vests back in their respective places.

Francis gazed at him curiously. ' _Oui?_ '

Arthur sighed and said, 'There's been a development. We may have new enemy on our hands, someone rather dangerous, and I wanted to ask you this: is there something you can design that can prevent someone from taking control of you? Making you do things against your own will?'

'You mean possession?' Francis asked, and when both Arthur and Abel nodded, he let out a huff. ' _Monsieur,_ I am a humble tailor. Not a scientist. I can only create items that assist with external factors that can harm you, not internal ones. Mind control is not something that can be stopped with a simple helmet—if you want to prevent something like that, I suggest you hire a scientist, or an engineer. I'm afraid I cannot help you.'

He sent them a small, modest smile and put his hands in his pockets. Arthur remained silent momentarily, studying Francis' façade.

'Very well,' he said. 'I appreciate your honesty.'

Francis bowed his head. 'Is that all for now?'

'Yes, that will be all. You've done well.'

He inclined his head towards Arthur once more, and moved towards the table to grab the leftover clothing bags. But to Arthur's surprise, he paused before unzipping the bag that was sitting on top and pulled out something from its depths… something that wasn't a bulletproof vest at all.

'May I ask you a favour?' Francis asked Arthur, looking more serious than Arthur had ever seen him be. He held out the item towards him. 'You're most likely to see him sooner than I… but if it is possible, could you give this to Antonio—sorry, _Monsieur_ Carriedo? It is important that it gets to him.'

Once he realised that what Francis was handing to him was, in fact, a letter, Arthur felt intrigue spark in his mind. _What purpose is this letter going to serve, I wonder…_ Taking the envelope, Arthur nodded and said to him, 'I'll make sure he gets it.'

' _Merci beaucoup, Monsieur._ ' Going to the door after grabbing the remaining clothing bags, he waved a hand, said, ' _Bonne nuit_. I'll see you soon, yes?' and left the room.

'Perhaps we should take a leaf out of his book, no?' Abel piped up, and Arthur turned to see him placing his pipe into his coat pocket. 'It's late, and we have a fair bit of work to do in the morning.'

Nodding, Arthur shrugged on his coat and stuffed his hands into a pair of dark gloves and the letter to Antonio into an inside pocket of his coat. The pair quickly cleaned the table by throwing away the empty cans of Coca-Cola and the cigarette ash into a nearby rubbish bin, and Abel collected the plans from the table and placed them into his briefcase. Arthur gave the place one last scan and let out a satisfied breath at its cleaner and much better looking state. Then they grabbed their vests that Francis had brought and headed out.

As he and Abel left the room, the door shut with a soft _click_ behind them.

.

As the five of them made their way back into Lukas' and Matthias' dormitory, Matthias shut the door behind them and heaved out a sigh. He saw the others find places to sit down, or rather in Lukas' case, land face down on the couch with a low groan. Emil, not bothered to move anywhere else, lifted Lukas' legs and sat down where they had been, placing them on his lap afterwards. Tino and Berwald found themselves two chairs, although there was a brief moment where they had gone for the same seat, only to back away with embarrassed smiles and pink faces. Matthias found himself a place on the floor, moving the coffee table a little bit forward so he could lie down and place his legs over Lukas on the couch. Despite their strange positions, it was evident that they didn't have a single care in the world about whether or not it was comfortable.

'Oi.' Lukas moved his head to glance at Matthias. 'Fuck off, you're heavy.'

'Nah, your butt's comfy,' was his retort and he saw Lukas narrow his eyes at him. But he didn't appear to be in the mood to argue for he buried his cheek into the pillow and stared at a spot on the floor.

A tense silence enveloped the living room, and Matthias knew that everyone's minds were exploding with utter confusion. What had seemed like a good idea had only made things even more complicated.

'I honestly don't know what to do… This is fucking crazy,' Matthias muttered, frowning deeply. 'Could they really be… you know?'

Emil shrugged. 'It seems to be the only logical explanation. You heard what Ludwig and Gilbert told us. They didn't know about Arthur's dual personality either. They're just as clueless as we are about all this.'

Matthias grabbed his hair and let out a strained sound. After seeing Arthur's interview on the news, the five of them had made their way downstairs to Ludwig and Gilbert's dormitory to give them the interrogation of a lifetime. But when they had arrived, Ludwig and Gilbert had, in fact, been expecting their visit, and had welcomed them in with no qualms. They had then proceeded to bombard the brothers with questions about Arthur, and why they hadn't told them about his double-crossing nature. It had been revealed to them that neither brother had known about Arthur's true intentions, and in spite of being the only ones out of them all to have seen him the most, they had only had the one meeting with him and had never really thought about pursuing any alliances with the older man.

Which left them in a bit of a pickle as a result. There were still a thousand questions that they didn't have the answers to, not to mention Arthur… What were _his_ intentions? What was it he stood to gain by, firstly, helping out superhumans, and then shutting them down and painting them as the enemy? None of it made any sense to Matthias.

'I thought he was on our side…' he said softly, and he heard the others moving to, perhaps, look at him. 'For once… I thought that maybe someone cared enough about us to help. But obviously not. He's just as bad as the rest.'

'Well, looks like we'll just have to go on as we usually do,' Tino mumbled in a tired tone. 'We've lasted this long—besides, I never liked the idea of Arthur anyway. It all seemed too shifty to begin with.'

'Yeah… and the meeting we had with him lead us nowhere, either,' Berwald added, sounding unimpressed. 'We'll just have to go back to how we used to things: _alone_.'

'Shouldn't have to be that way.' Everyone turned to look at the flat mess on the couch that was Lukas. 'Why is it that we supers get the shitty side of things? Why is it so hard for people to see that we're not dangerous, but that we just want to help, to make this world a better place? _Why_ is it they are so scared of us?'

'Because we're unexplainable, Lukas,' said Emil. 'They have nothing on our kind. They don't know anything about how it begins, what causes it, why some supers are weaker than others, or why some are more powerful than anything they know. So what do they do? They "study" us—in other words they lock us up, dissect us and, potentially, kill us. Because we're too fucking complicated for their puny minds to comprehend. So they scorn us. They make us terrified to be alive, to be who we are… and there's nothing we can do about it.'

'Well, that's just dumb,' Matthias grumbled. 'Seriously, I'm with Lukas on this. Can't they see that we're _trying_ to help? That we have all this potential to actually help them with things?'

'We know that, Matt, but it's not something we can change!' Emil retorted.

'Fucking watch me, you wait—'

'Matt, don't do this to yourself,' Berwald interrupted. 'It's not worth it.'

'Bloody hell, I am so _sick_ and tired of stupid humans—'

' _Guys_ , shh!'

Falling silent, the others watched as Tino leapt from his seat and sped towards the front door. Since he was on the floor on his back, Matthias strained his ears to listen as there was some shuffling and as Tino let out a soft gasp.

'It's another fucking letter!' he whispered harshly, and that was enough to cause the others to mirror his previous action. Matthias did some kind of ungraceful move that involved a half roll and got to his feet, Lukas rolled off the couch onto the floor, Emil dove off his side of the sofa and Berwald had already legged it to the door to pull it open. Matthias, Lukas and Emil ran after him and exchanged a brief look with him before the four of them went out into the hallway.

They looked left and right, trying to pinpoint their ghostlike guest. Yet as they looked, they found nothing, and Matthias found himself starting to get frustrated.

'Where are they are?' he hissed. 'Who is this person that keeps leaving these _fucking letters?_ '

'You know, if you wanted to meet me, you could have just said,' came a voice from behind him, causing him to let out a squeak in surprise and turn around.

Standing in their hallway was a short, young man. How he got past the five of them into the dormitory was beyond Matthias, but that didn't seem to matter as he took him in. He appeared to be an intelligent sort, with thin-wired glasses and a head of sleek, straight hair of dark blond. There was a secretive smile on his face, one that made his blue eyes crinkle in joy, and he held himself in a way that oozed credibility.

'How the hell did you get in there?' Emil exclaimed, his head going from the corridor to their hallway.

Tino shook his head at his friends as they came back into the dormitory and shut the door behind them with shocked looks on their faces. 'How did you not see him? He went right past all of you and hid behind the door! I noticed him straight away despite being on the other side!'

The man chuckled. 'Ah yes, I forgot about your senses, Tino.' When they gaped at him blankly, he sighed softly. 'I apologise for the secrecy, but I had to make sure you were genuine before I made myself known.'

'Sorry to be blunt,' Lukas muttered, 'but who the fuck are you?'

The man let out a cheerful laugh. 'I'm sorry, where are my manners?' He gave them a bow. 'Eduard von Bock, at your service. I am the persona behind all these letters.'

A stunned pause settled around them for a moment before Matthias said quietly, 'You better take a seat then. You have a lot of explaining to do.'

'I do, yes…' Eduard sniffed. 'But this not the place, nor the time. But I will tell you this… things are a lot more complicated than they seem.'

'Oh, great! More complications, that's all we need!' Lukas laughed humourlessly. 'We didn't have complications before, so let's have some now!'

'Luke,' Matthias warned.

'I know you don't really trust me,' Eduard told them, and they all gazed at him in interest. 'I've been sending you on wild goose chases… and some of them haven't ended well, I am aware. You were never meant to be subjected to that kind of violence,' he aimed at Matthias. 'You weren't supposed to end up in the hospital fighting for your life. None of you were supposed to end up like this… But these people we're against… they're bloody ruthless, and they won't stop until they've gotten what they want.'

Tino then asked the question that was on all their minds. 'Who are these people, Eduard?' He swallowed. 'Just how dangerous are they?'

Eduard regarded their hopeful façades with his own sad one and shook his head. 'I can't tell you… not here and not now. But I will say this: you can trust me. I'm like you.'

'What? In society's backburner?' Berwald mumbled.

'Well… yes.' He smiled softly at them. 'I'm a super, just like you guys. But look, I can't go into detail just yet. I only came here to make some form of verbal contact with you before things get out of control.'

The five of them swapped exasperated looks with each other. The last thing they wanted was to do some more waiting, and to pile on more questions that hadn't been answered. But it was apparent that they couldn't fight against what was already happening, and they had to be patient—however irritating it was—just a little bit longer.

'So when can we know?' Emil asked Eduard, worrying his teeth on his lower lip. 'The sooner we know what's going on, the better, right?'

'How does Tuesday sound?' Eduard asked them, after a moment's pause. 'I'll give you the details then.'

* * *

 _ **To be continued...**_


	17. Chapter 16

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Himaruya Hidekazu. The plot of this AU belongs to myself and theartisserie.**

* * *

 _"_ _Nothing is ever what it seems to be."_

 **o**

Two days had passed after Eduard's short visit, and on that late Saturday afternoon, Emil and Lukas had ventured down from their dormitories and onto the main footpath outside the university. Sunlight streaked the concrete path, casting long, black shadows of their bodies on the walkway, and their world was encased in a warm, golden glow. If it wasn't for the cold breeze blowing through the leaves of the trees, it might have been a warm, spring day, or an early summer twilight where it wasn't too hot or too cold. But Lukas didn't mind the weather, and neither, it seemed, did Emil, for there was a content expression on his face as he breathed in the fresh air.

While they walked, they talked about a number of things, including the assignments they had yet to start and the readings they had yet to take notes on, how dodgy the pricing was of the food on campus, and how annoying one of the societies was with their constant in-your-face attitude. But as they talked, somehow their conversation about university turned into a discussion of the ambiguity of Eduard's appearance on Thursday and the seriousness of the situation he had so briefly touched upon that they felt they were neck-deep in.

'It just doesn't make a whole lot of sense,' Emil muttered, running a hand through his hair. 'Why would he suddenly just… reveal himself to us like that? Like the whole thing being a secret wasn't important anymore?'

'Maybe it's something to do with what he wants to talk to us about on Tuesday,' said Lukas. 'It all sounds overly serious… Should we be worried, I wonder…'

'We can worry about that later,' Emil mumbled. 'Right now I'm worried about my stomach and whether or not it can succumb to Myra's cooking.'

Lukas cracked a smile. 'I forgot—you're weak to my mother's cooking.'

'Yeah, fuck you. You're weak to my dad's striking in football.'

'Cýrus was a professional footballer at some stage. I don't see how that's fair.'

'Well, Myra must have been a professional cook because my stomach _cannot_ handle the _richness of her food!_ '

Lukas let out a laugh at the pout on his step-brother's face. Checking his watch, he said to Emil, 'We better hurry or we'll miss our bus.'

'The bus stop is right there, Lukas,' he pointed out as they turned a corner, 'and I don't see the bus coming yet…'

 _Ugh. Typical bus, always running late,_ Lukas thought in annoyance as they sat down on the seats in the shelter. Emil dug his hands into his pockets and tilted his head back to rest against the glass backing of the shelter. Lukas looked once more down the road to see if their bus was coming before mirroring Emil's actions.

'One day the bus is going to be on time,' he said to Emil. 'One day…'

'Even if it's super late, our parents will understand,' Emil told him matter-of-factly. 'They know how dodgy the buses are.'

Given that it was the weekend and since at that point in time neither Lukas nor Emil had much going on, their parents had invited them over for dinner, to see how they were going and to catch up as it had been, to quote Emil's father, "too long since we've seen each other". Lukas was glad to be heading home, even if it was only for a little while. It would give him some time away from the hassle that was university, and the looming danger that seemed to follow him a fair bit these days.

A few minutes passed by before the familiar rumbling of the bus came from the near distance. Standing up to confirm that the large number in the corner belonged to their bus, Lukas motioned to Emil to get up as he flagged it down. They hopped on, grabbing the seats closest to the door at the back of the bus.

'I'll let them know we're on our way,' Emil said to Lukas when the bus began moving. 'And remind me to put more money on my bus pass in the morning, I'm almost out.'

They then fell into a comfortable silence, and Lukas watched the buildings go by as they got closer to home. They turned from the tall apartment blocks into little one to two storey houses and it was a full twenty minutes before they reached their stop. Their parents' house was three houses down from the bus stop, and from where they stood as the bus roared away behind them, they could see the front porch light on, beckoning them to come home.

As they moved up the path to the front gate, Lukas glanced over his shoulder to look down the other end of the street. He could vaguely see the outline of Matthias' parents' house, the place where he had spent most of his childhood. _Maybe I should pop in and say 'hi' later on_ , he thought as he followed Emil up the little pebbled track to the front steps of the house. _I haven't seen them in a while… Would be nice to catch up._ Emil reached the top first and waited for Lukas to join him before knocking loudly on the front door.

They didn't have to wait long before it opened and standing there, in an oversized jumper and flour-covered pants, was Myra. A large smile formed on her mouth at the sight of the two of them, and she didn't waste a single second before engulfing the both of them in a hug.

'You've made it!' she cried, drawing back to look at them. 'My goodness, you've grown! I was sure I was taller last time I saw you, Emil. And you need stop growing, Lukas, look at you! You must do something about those pants, they're far too short—I can see your ankles!'

'It's good to see you, Mum.' Lukas smiled fondly at her and pressed a soft kiss on her cheek. 'Sorry we're late.'

Gazing at his mother, Lukas felt strangely comforted. It was as if he was walking into the arms of security, of love, _of home._ The familiar scene of his mother, long-haired and thin, smiley and full of life, made the past few weeks of horror, grief and pure annoyances disappear.

'Flattery won't work with me, Lukas,' she said sternly, but the seriousness was broken by the smile that played at the corners of her mouth. 'Come on in. And don't worry about being late, I know what the buses are like. It's good to have you home.'

'Good to be home,' Emil mumbled quietly, sending Lukas a knowing look as they walked in.

As they took off their shoes, coats and scarves, Myra told Emil that his father was in the kitchen, "adding the finishing touches". As they went through the hallway and into the living room, Lukas found himself feeling much warmer… and a little bit nostalgic. His eyes wandered over the photo frames that sat on the mantelpiece, and he stared fondly at the tiny versions of himself and Emil that were displayed through the glass panes. There was also the wedding photo of the day their parents got married, and one where the four of them had been on a picnic, which also happened to be Lukas' last day before university. That one sat in the middle, with a thick brown frame.

' _God_ , you were an ugly child.'

Lukas snorted and poked Emil in the stomach with his elbow when he came to stand next to him. 'I'm an angel compared to you. You look like a potato.'

'Oh, rude!'

But the grins that were on their faces made any true spite vanish into thin air, making the whole thing nothing more than playful sibling banter. If anything, Emil had been a rather cute child, and nothing at all like a potato, and Lukas was anything but ugly. But neither of them dared to say that to the other.

'Emil, Lukas—you're home!'

Tearing his eyes away from the middle photo, Lukas saw Cýrus coming out of the kitchen, wearing a dirtied apron and a large smile. Every time he saw him, Lukas couldn't get over how _big_ he was. He was tall as a skyscraper, with broad shoulders and muscles that put most rugby players to shame. Yet despite his enormous stature, it was amazing how much he reminded Lukas of Matthias, with his good-natured grin, his golden heart and his tendency to be a little childish. Whenever he saw him, he couldn't believe how Emil didn't inherit his size, or how much smaller his mother became when she stood next to him… and she was already so small.

'Hey _Pabbi_ ,' Emil greeted and went to hug his father. Cýrus grabbed his son's cheeks and placed a kiss on his forehead as they parted. Emil made no complaints, which surprised Lukas greatly. _The kid's growing up…_ He shuddered. _God no, that's just weird._

'Lukas… good to see you,' Cýrus said to him, his arms opened wide, which broke Lukas out of his thoughts.

Two years ago, Lukas would have looked at the gesture as a form of danger and would have hesitated to comply. But that was two years ago, and Lukas happily allowed his step-father to envelop him in a warm embrace. He smelt of peppermint and all things home, and Lukas found himself smiling in content. When they pulled away, it hadn't gone and his step-father's eyebrows shot into his hairline.

'A smile! I must be doing something good,' he exclaimed, grinning broadly.

'You have been since you met my mother,' Lukas told him quietly. _That was cheesy as fuck, Lukas. Where did that come from?_ 'And besides, I have plenty of reasons to be happy today.'

'Is that so?' Cýrus beamed and squeezed Lukas' shoulder. 'I'm glad to hear that.'

'Hey, will you please come and help me with the food?' Myra stuck her head of the kitchen with a raised eyebrow. 'Come on!'

'Better not keep her waiting,' his step-father muttered and went to re-join his wife. The brothers exchanged an impressed expression between them and followed suit. But when they entered the kitchen, they were shooed out by their parents, and were told to sit at the table and wait. Not wanting to argue, they did as they were told and made their way to the dining table.

Their dining table was situated on the other side of the living room, away from the mantelpiece and where Emil and Lukas had been standing when they had arrived. When they turned around to face the opposite direction, they were met with the sight of an overflowing surface. Dishes of all sorts were placed at all ends of the table, around the plates and the cutlery. Because there was so much food, Lukas was surprised to see a vase of flowers and candles amongst it all.

'Right, that's the last of it, I think…' Myra announced as she and Cýrus left the kitchen—Cýrus without his stained apron—and placed two more plates of food onto the table.

Emil took one glance at the spread of food and sent his step-brother a frightened look. 'You're going to have to roll me home after I eat all this.'

Lukas fought hard not to smirk, but a snort passed through his nose and Emil made the very dramatic show of rolling his eyes in exasperation. Their parents laughed and Cýrus tenderly ruffled his son's hair.

'Well, dig in!' Myra exclaimed as they sat themselves down, and the four of them started piling food onto their plates. The smell coming from the dishes was incredible, and Lukas found himself wishing that the food on campus was as amazing as what was in front of them.

Soon, they were chatting and laughing away. Their parents were keen to know how their classes for the semester were going, while Lukas and Emil wanted to know how the house was without them making so much noise in it. Hearty banter and cheerful laughter came from all four of them, and none of them noticed as the sun went down and the world was encased in darkness.

As they ate and talked, Lukas started to wonder if he should tell his family about Matthias. They had managed to keep their relationship a secret thus far… until Matthias had sprung on him that morning about what had happened when he went to visit his parents the previous night. He had told him that he was bullied by them to spill the beans, for he had been "acting strangely" and was "not himself". Lukas knew Matthias' parents as well as he knew his mother, and he couldn't blame him for telling.

Yet… he had the odd feeling that Matthias' parents weren't the only people who knew. He had the odd feeling that _Emil_ knew about them too. Because they were close, Emil had the habit of simply walking into Lukas' and Matthias' dormitory when the door was unlocked. When he had come by to pick him up, Lukas and Matthias had been in the middle of a heavy make-out session on the couch. Once they had heard him coming in, Lukas had made a beeline straight for the bathroom, faster than a blink, and Matthias had greeted Emil while discreetly trying to fix his hair. Lukas had only come out after he had managed to calm down his rapidly beating heart and when the flush in his cheeks had died down.

After he had said goodbye to his boyfriend, he wordlessly steered Emil out of the dormitory and into the corridor. While he hadn't said anything, Emil had sent Lukas an inquisitive look when they were going down the stairs, which Lukas had swiftly ignored. He knew that if he told Emil about being with Matthias, he would never hear the end of it, including all the inappropriate jokes that he seemed to reserve just for Lukas. Emil had done it with Lukas' previous girlfriends, and Lukas knew that he wouldn't back off just because it was Matthias.

In fact… Lukas was certain that it would only get worse _because_ it was Matthias.

'You okay, Lukas? You look troubled.'

Lukas lifted his gaze from his plate to set it on his stepfather's face. The question had caught the attentions of his mother and Emil, who looked curiously at Lukas.

'I'm fine,' he said in reply. _Are you sure about that, Lukas?_

Cýrus seemed to have read this mind for he raised an eyebrow and said to him, 'Are you sure? You look like you have a lot on your mind.'

Setting his cutlery down, Lukas hesitated. He felt exposed, and the inability to hide the truth any longer seemed inevitable. 'No. There is something I want to tell you all.'

After making an interested sound, his mother gestured to him to continue with a flick of her wrist. Licking his lips, he suddenly felt shy. His mouth went dry, his tongue became tied and he found it hard to meet the eyes of his relatives. His palms became clammy and he moved them from the table to his lap. Why was he so nervous? _For God's sake, you're just telling them about Matthias! They know him,_ he told himself.

His mother sensed his hesitancy. 'It's okay if you don't want to tell us yet, Lukas. We'll understand.'

'I'm in a relationship,' he blurted out quickly. 'I'm… I'm in a relationship.'

Whatever they had expected Lukas to say, it wasn't that. Emil choked on his drink, his stepfather's eyes went round and his mother's mouth fell open.

' _What?'_

'Who is it?' Myra asked excitedly. 'Is she nice?'

Lukas swallowed thickly. _Now or never…_ 'It's not a girl,' he said timidly. 'I've got a boyfriend…'

There was a stunned pause at Lukas' words. Then a slam on the table caused the parents and Lukas to jolt in their seats as Emil's fist came down. He had a smug smile on his face, a smile that unnerved Lukas considerably.

'I knew it… I fucking knew it!' he crowed, ignoring the call by his father for swearing. 'I knew something had changed between you guys! You're going out with Matthias, aren't you?'

Lukas didn't say a word, but he knew that his reddening cheeks were a dead giveaway. His mother let out a joyous shriek and clapped her hands together enthusiastically.

'My god! This is great news!' she cried, standing from her seat and enveloping Lukas in an awkwardly positioned hug. 'I knew you two would get together one day! I've seen the way that boy dotes on you—oh, this is marvellous!'

'It's marvellous alright—you were doing the nasty when I walked in, weren't you?' Emil said slyly, hiding his smirk behind the rim of his glass.

'Shut _up_ , Emil!' Lukas felt his face turn an even darker red and he looked down at his plate, unable to meet any of their eyes. Then he mumbled in a very quiet voice, 'We were just kissing…'

'Yeah… but I bet his dick feels _real_ good, am I right?'

' _I swear to god, Emil._ '

'Emil, leave him alone,' Cýrus scolded him as he began to laugh uproariously at his step-brother's flustered state. 'What he gets up to in his own time with Matthias is none of our business.'

'It's fun to see him squirm, though,' Emil said, grinning hugely. ' _Especially_ when it comes to talking about having sex with his partners.'

Lukas flicked a piece of food at Emil's face at his statement and muttered a soft, 'Fuck you' as he did so. Emil spluttered when it hit him square in the forehead and he stuck his tongue out at Lukas.

'Boys, play nicely, please,' Myra reprimanded, although she was trying hard to fight the smile that was forming at the corners of her mouth.

'No way—this is payback for when he embarrassed me in front of Freya,' Emil grumbled, his cheeks growing pink at the mention of his former girlfriend.

Lukas allowed himself to smile evilly. 'I enjoy teasing you, little brother.'

' _Ja_ , likewise, you bastard.'

Poking his tongue out at Emil like he did to him earlier, Lukas went back to eating, albeit with his face as dark as a strawberry. Myra and Cýrus said nothing more about Lukas' blooming relationship with Matthias, and he was grateful for it. Dinner passed on without any more interruptions, but general chatter and the occasional bad joke from Cýrus filled their dining room from time to time.

When they had all eaten to the point where they couldn't eat anymore—Emil in particular had refused to swallow another mouthful of anything in fear of being unable to move—the brothers demanded that their parents go and rest while they cleaned up. It took a couple of minutes of convincing but in the end, Cýrus and Myra gave up arguing and let Lukas and Emil do as they wished. So that was how, after about an hour or so of dinner, Lukas and Emil were in the kitchen, Lukas with his arms elbow deep in the sink and Emil with a towel in his. It was only after they were there for about ten minutes did Emil start interrogating Lukas, which he was surprised had only happened then and not the minute they had entered the kitchen.

'So… you and Matthias,' Emil began, looking at Lukas from the corner of his eye. 'When did that happen?'

Not seeing any reason to lie, Lukas told him, 'Last week,' before stacking a clean plate into the drying basket.

Emil gaped at him in shock. ' _Last week?_ Shit, I thought you guys got together ages back! When last week?'

Swallowing thickly, he replied with, 'When he woke up. You know… in hospital.'

' _Okay_ , what the fuck?' Lukas watched as Emil shook his head in incredulity. 'You've been going out for about a week and you're already hitting second base?'

'Second—?' Lukas rolled his eyes. 'How many times, Emil—we were _just_ kissing when you walked in, okay? Nothing… more than that…'

'If you say so. But in all seriousness, Lukas,' Emil began as he took one of the plates from the rack to dry, 'he better treat you right.'

Lukas let out a sigh. 'He's Matthias. Not the devil.'

'Regardless.' He took a handful of cutlery and began drying them as well once he had put the plate away. 'He better take care of you.'

'He's been taking care of me since we were five, Emil.'

'He better have protection—'

' _Emil._ ' Lukas' face went bright red but he stared his step-brother down. 'Seriously, can you stop?'

Emil huffed silently, and Lukas was alarmed to see him with a sombre façade. 'Lukas, it's my job. I'm your brother, after all. I've got to give you the talk at some point… and I know it's Matthias, but my point still stands. He better take care of you because you've had enough shit happen in your life to be played.'

At that, Lukas froze and started to panic. How much did Emil actually know? Did his mother say something to him? Did _Cýrus_ tell Emil, because surely he knew? But his heart calmed down when Emil went on to say, 'I mean, I don't need to remind you of your last girlfriend. If he does something like what she did to you, I'm gonna skin his arse.'

Blowing out a shaky breath, Lukas said quietly, 'Matthias is nothing like Lexi. He won't… cheat on me, okay? He's better than that.'

'She didn't _just_ cheat on you, Lukas! She used you as a toy and then left you behind as if you were worth nothing!' He glared at his step-brother. 'I still remember the bruises on your arms—'

'Emil, for god's sake, stop.' Lukas quickly shut off the water, dried his hands and turned to face Emil fully, and for some odd reason, he felt angry. 'Matthias is _not_ like that! Fuck, he almost died last week because he saved me from getting killed. _I_ should have been the one in that hospital bed, not him! Not to mention he's done so much for me over the years, especially when we were kids. He's not just a friend to me anymore, Emil—he's someone I can't live without and I owe _everything_ to him. So can you stop painting him as a bad guy? He's not the type.'

A stunned pause fell between them. Emil's eyes were wide in surprise and Lukas felt his cheeks burning once again. _Well done, Lukas. You're an idiot. And where did all that come from? Have you always felt this way about Matthias? Fuck…_

Emil was quiet for a moment longer and his expression turned sad. Lukas was anxious that he had gone too far, but that thought flew from his mind when Emil muttered out, 'I know all that. But I can't help but worry. You're the brother I never had growing up… and yet, it's like I've known you my whole life, and I'd hate for something bad to happen to you, okay?'

His face went bright red after that, and he went back to drying the dishes. Lukas knew he was embarrassed, and guilt felt like a rock in his stomach. He knew Emil was only trying to help, so he placed his hands on his step-brother's shoulders and made him look at him.

'Thank you,' he whispered, 'but you don't need to worry. Matthias acts more like a puppy than a man most of the time. He's harmless.'

A soft chuckle passed Emil's lips. 'Yeah, he's immature as hell. But I still worry, even if it's about someone you've known for so long. It's just in my nature, I guess…'

'I appreciate it,' Lukas said, 'but there's really nothing to worry about. How about this? If something happens, you'll be the first person to know about it.'

'I'll hold you to that,' he grumbled, but a smile worked its way onto his lips. 'Now, are you going to finish those anytime soon? We still have to pack the leftover food and store them.'

'Yes, _Mum_ ,' Lukas muttered, only to laugh when Emil retaliated and whacked him with the towel.

A relaxed silence enveloped them and they continued to clean up and pack things away for a solid half hour. Cýrus came in at one point to check if they were still alive and not "drowning in the dishes", to which they shooed him out like he and Myra had done to them earlier. When they had put the last lot of containers in the fridge and put the last plate away, the brothers wandered into the living room where their parents were and plopped down next to them, Emil next to his father on the couch and Lukas in the armchair right next to his mother. They received gratitude in the form of tender kisses and smiles that stretched to the ears.

'Now that you two are done, I'm just going to grab some water,' Myra announced, standing from her seat on the couch. 'Anyone want anything while I'm in the kitchen?'

When she received three negative responses, she made her way to the table and grabbed her glass before heading in the kitchen.

'Hey _Pabbi_ … can you turn the TV up?' Emil muttered once she had left. His eyes were plastered on the television screen—that must have been turned on while they had been cleaning up—and Lukas saw them glint with intrigue.

Cýrus reached for the remote and turned up the volume, and the newsreader's grim tone filled the living room, catching the three men's attentions instantly.

 _'_ _Breaking news. A report has just come in of a chilling and chaotic situation occurring at the Correctional Centre in Ashfield. There has been a claim of at least ten criminals having escaped in the early hours of this afternoon, having kept the guards under hostage for two hours while they had made their escape. Their identities are not known at this point in time, but the public must be aware that these people are under lengthy judicial sentences for charges of assault, drugs and sex trafficking, rape and murder. The public is encouraged to remain calm, but to be aware of any potential dangers—'_

A loud crash came from behind the three men, causing all of them to turn towards the sound. Myra stood in the archway to the kitchen, with her hands over her mouth and her eyes wide in horror. The glass she had had in her hands lay shattered at her feet, and the pool of water began to seep into the carpet.

Lukas was the first to one to react, leaping from the chair and hurrying over to his mother. He took her by the shoulders and led her back into the kitchen, away from the curious eyes of the Steilssons and the mess on the floor. She shook under his palms and Lukas could tell that she was struggling to keep in her fear. Lukas knew that she had every right to be scared, just as he was. That news report did not bring good news at all…

'Oh _god_.' His mother's hand shook as it covered her mouth. ' _Nei…_ This can't be happening… Not now…'

'Mum… does Cýrus know?' Lukas whispered to her. 'You know… about the thing?'

Myra nodded. 'But not Emil. I'd like to keep it that way for now.' She let out a gasp and collapsed against her son. 'What are we going to do, Lukas?'

Bringing her closer, Lukas caught Cýrus' eye over Myra's shoulder as he popped his head into the kitchen. He pointed to her, wordlessly asking if she was okay, to which Lukas shook his head.

'We'll get through this, Mum,' he said to her, rubbing her back soothingly. 'Everything's going to be okay.'

But as the words went past his lips, Lukas pondered whether or not that was entirely true.

 **.**

She could feel a number of eyes on her as she sat at the nearest, most vacant table near the entrance podium, where the _maître d_ was letting in more guests. She knew it was because of what she was wearing, but that was the last thing on her mind. No… She had a different reason to make herself present that night.

Originally, she wasn't going to come to her boss's grand dinner party that was celebrating the company's biggest success in two years. But when she heard someone special was going to be there, she had to come. She needed all the help she could get, and as quickly as possible.

'Hey there, sexy,' a voice came from behind her. 'Aren't you a sight for sore eyes?'

Turning around, she raised an eyebrow at her co-worker. He looked on the verge of being overly drunk, and the lopsided grin that graced his lips and the stench of stale alcohol that radiated off him confirmed it. Sliding into the seat next to hers, he pulled it forward ungracefully and rested his cheek in his palm. She let out a sigh. Her drunk co-worker was not what she wanted to deal with…

So when he let his free hand wander up the bare expanse of her back, she brought her foot down heavily on his, causing a howl of pain to escape his lips. 'Touch me again and it will be your balls instead of your foot,' was her warning before she stood up and walked away from the groaning man.

 _Drunk men are vultures,_ she thought, shuddering at the feeling that crawled up her back. _Just because women show a bit of skin!_

Sighing, she made a detour to the bathroom. To her surprise, she found it empty, having expected a number of women to be redoing their makeup. _Might come later on in the evening…_ she thought as she looked herself once over in a large mirror. She thought she did rather well on such short notice, and she grinned appreciatively at her skill.

She had been waiting for the chance to wear the dress she wore, as it had been sitting in her wardrobe for months. It was a dark red, with a sheer, floral lace covering the skirt. With lacy sleeves that went down to her wrists and a small amount cut out at the back, she couldn't believe such a pretty dress had been for such little money. Maybe it was a bit much for the occasion, not that she really cared. She thought she looked rather hot.

With one last glance, she left the bathroom and scanned the crowded room for any free tables. To her delight, she found one in the far corner. It was near a little stage, which had been propped up for the speech later on in the evening, and a beautiful piano just waiting to be played. She walked over to it, muttering 'Excuse me,' and 'Sorry,' more often than not. Sitting down when she finally reached it, she sighed in content and shut her eyes for a moment.

When she did, she noticed the music in the air changed almost immediately. Opening her eyes, she shifted her gaze to the corner of the room, staring at the large piano that was in front of her table. A man was seated at it, his slender hands pressing against the keys. She found herself entranced in his song as he played, her figure relaxing pleasantly as the notes wandered through the ambience.

The longer she stared at the man, the more she began to notice who she was staring at. He was just the man she had been seeking out, the reason she had come to the party that evening.

Leaning on her elbow, she watched the man's fingers glide effortlessly on the ivory keys in a daze. The music was beautiful, and the serene look on his face as he played made it just that little bit more special.

But much to her disappointment, she had to break the spell. She was running out of time. However, when the last notes of the song sounded, his fingers removed themselves from the instrument and she joined in with the array of polite applause. _Now's my chance!_

Standing from her seat, she made her way over to the piano. As she leant against the sleek instrument, she caught the attention of its play master, who looked at her with intrigue in his eyes. She sent him a soft smile.

'Hello,' she greeted. 'That was absolutely beautiful.'

The man bowed his head in gratitude and stood from his stool. He took her hand in his and brought it up to his lips. He brushed them against the skin and she felt her face grow warm at the contact.

'Thank you, ma'am,' he told her, his voice low. 'But perhaps nothing is as beautiful as you are in the light.'

She felt her face go as red as her dress. She smiled against her better nature and whispered out a word of thanks.

'Are you enjoying yourself?' he asked her. Those eyes… They were calculating, and she was immediately absorbed in their colour. She nodded at his question, fingering her garment in sudden nervousness. _Might as well get to the point,_ she told herself. _He's the only one who can help you now._

Taking in a deep breath, she blurted out, 'Forgive me if I am forward but… am I correct in saying that you're Roderich Edelstein?'

His expression was one of surprise, his eyes going slightly round behind his frames. His eyebrows came together in a deep frown, and he said slowly, 'Yes… Why do you ask?'

Biting her lip, she did a quick scan of the room and leant towards Roderich's ear. She ignored the smattering of pink that erupted on his cheeks as she whispered, 'I think I may need your help.'

* * *

 ** _To be continued..._**


	18. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Himaruya Hidekazu. The plot of this AU belongs to myself and theartisserie.**

* * *

 _"_ _Perhaps what is the most terrifying idea is that you never know how long the calm before the storm is going to last… or, indeed, when it is the calm before the storm."_

 **o**

Matthias felt nervous as he knocked on his friend's door. Gazing down at his feet, he was shocked when the door opened almost immediately and he was met with a puzzled-looking Ludwig **.**

'Matt? What's up?'

Smiling sheepishly, Matthias opened his mouth and said, 'I come in peace.'

Ludwig blinked and let out a short sound, which might have been a chuckle... Matthias wasn't sure. Rubbing the back of his neck, he struggled to find the right words. He had been thinking all afternoon how to do this, ever since Lukas had gone with Emil to visit their parents, and he had only come up with the idea shortly after. But how he wanted to show and tell Ludwig the reason of his arrival just didn't seem to want to come out of his mouth in any coherent form.

'Do… Do you want to come in?'

'No. Yes. I mean—' Matthias huffed out in irritation. _For the love of god, just say it!_ 'I'm sorry.'

'It's fine,' Ludwig told him with a small smile.

'No, I mean…' he sighed heavily. 'I'm really sorry. I've been a dick to you, and that's not acceptable. I treated you like dirt, and I shouldn't have, because you're my friend and I shouldn't have been so quick to doubt your honesty. Or your loyalty. And since I missed your birthday while I was in hospital…' He brought out the six-pack of beer from behind his back. '… I thought we could have a belated celebration now. You're twenty now, after all. Can't not have a celebration for that, can we?'

There. He had said it. Once he had realised how awful he had been to Ludwig—and to Gilbert for that matter—Matthias knew he had to make it up to him somehow. He just hoped it was enough.

Ludwig remained silent for a moment, and Matthias began to think that he had screwed up even more. But when he let out a laugh and a large smile formed on his face, Matthias felt the weight on his heart lift, and he couldn't help but smile too.

'Get in here, you crazy Dane,' was all Ludwig told him before he opened the door wider and stepped aside for Matthias to enter. 'Thank you.'

Once the door had shut with a _click_ , the sound of laughter and of clinking bottles was heard, and would continue for the rest of the evening.

 **.**

Monday morning rolled in, slow and dreary, with dark clouds hanging over the city. There was the promise of rain, and the people—or at least the smart ones who had seen the forecast or judged by the sky's appearance—carried or packed umbrellas for the day ahead. There were barely any students who walked or ran to their morning lectures that didn't have at least some form of protection against the shower that was due that day.

It was about noon when Berwald walked out of his lecture building, having just sat through a tedious two hour lecture, and by that point, the dark, heavy clouds had decided to give up. Water pelted down, pattering loudly upon the pavement and splashing up against the backs of people's legs as they ran to seek shelter or attempted in vain to open their umbrellas. It was when Berwald had opened his large, purple umbrella that he saw a familiar body running towards the cover the lecture building provided. Their bag acted as a form of protection against the onslaught of rain that poured from the blackened sky, and Berwald heard a string of curses flying into the air as they came to stand near him near the entrance of the building. The man shook his bag to rid it of the water that had accumulated there, and ran his fingers through his damp, pale hair once he had dumped his bag at his feet. The action made Berwald blush.

'Tino.'

Tino turned his head at the mention of his name, and upon seeing Berwald, his scowl transformed into a bright smile. Berwald felt his cheeks flush even more, and he hoped that Tino didn't notice it.

'Ber, hi!' He grinned sheepishly and pointed to the item in Berwald's hand. 'I see you were smart and packed for the weather. It was sunny when I left home, so I thought I wouldn't need an umbrella.' He grimaced. 'I guess I was wrong. Now my bag is all wet!'

Berwald raised an eyebrow in concern. 'Did you walk here?'

'No, I took the bus,' Tino told him after shaking his head. 'But the bus stop is a little far from here.'

There was a brief pause before Tino suddenly let out a horrified gasp and dropped to his knees, successfully startling Berwald as he did so. 'Oh god, I hope my books aren't ruined! Fuck!' he cried as he rummaged through his bag.

The area around Tino's feet was suddenly covered by the contents of his bag: sketchbooks, a container of food, a pencil case with a fraying edge, a water bottle and a number of dampened booklets of what appeared to be readings. Berwald heard Tino muttering under his breath, swearing at himself and at the damp booklets. Then he cuddled his sketchbooks to his chest and breathed out a sigh of relief. Berwald couldn't help but smile at the sight.

Seeing him looking, Tino blushed furiously and hastily packed his bag. 'I like my sketchbooks, okay? Don't judge,' he muttered as he stuffed his items back in.

Berwald merely smiled and bent down to help him. They worked in silence for a few moments before they stood up, Tino resting the strap of his bag on his shoulder.

'Where are you headed?' Berwald asked him, peeking at the rain from the corner of his eye.

'I'm off to Symbols and Systems,' he answered. 'Got a lecture in Matthews.'

'I'm heading up that way—to the library.' He held out his umbrella. 'Shall we go together?'

The large grin that split Tino's cheeks made Berwald's world turn rosy gold. The sheer joy on the man's face was enough to make Berwald's entire week—hell, his entire _month_ if it came down to it—and the nod that followed made his heart soar. Getting in close together, Tino threaded his arm through Berwald's, their shoulders being pressed together, and the warmth that erupted between them made Berwald's body relax.

Berwald could hardly concentrate on anything else as they padded through the rain, walking up the giant pathway to the higher part of the university campus. Rain splashed into their shoes and coated the material of their jeans covering their calves, but Berwald found that he didn't really care. Tino's elated expression, the sunshine that seemed to radiate from his soul through his skin and eyes, and his energetic voice as he talked about various things and asked Berwald a number of questions was all that Berwald needed. He would listen to Tino's voice forever if he could, no matter what he was talking to him about. It was always filled with some kind of beautiful emotion Berwald couldn't quite identify, but it made him _listen_ and want to listen because it was the most gorgeous voice he had ever heard in his life.

It was amazing, Berwald then realised, how such a tiny man, so happy and full of life, someone who could make him _blush_ with a simple smile, could become a demon in two seconds flat on the field. Maybe that was what made him so attractive, and strangely relatable.

'Say, Berwald…' He looked down at the top of Tino's head. 'What do you think about the whole… you know… with Eduard?'

Berwald blinked at Tino's query, then frowned. He wasn't entirely sure what to think about Eduard's surprise visit to Matthias' and Lukas' dormitory on Thursday, or how he felt about the information that was being withheld from them all. He told Tino so, who made a curious sound as his brow dipped.

'I hope he tells us everything when we see him tomorrow,' he said, tone deep with thought. 'I don't know how much longer we can deal with the secrecy. I mean, one of us has already landed in hospital because of this chaos!'

'Keep your voice down,' Berwald told him quietly as a group of students, giggling and shrieking at the weather, raced by.

'Sorry—but you know? It's getting too dangerous…' He heard Tino sigh. 'I would hate for someone else to go through what Matthias did.'

'Hopefully it won't come to that,' Berwald muttered solemnly. 'He better tell us everything when we see him tomorrow.'

Tino hummed in agreement and he clung onto Berwald's arm as he shivered. Berwald nearly dropped the umbrella when he did so, and he had the alarming thought of bringing Tino to his chest in order to wrap his arms around him to keep him warm. _This man is going to be the death of me,_ Berwald mused as they began to scale the stairs leading up to the upper campus.

They walked in a comfortable silence for the rest of the way, Tino occasionally asking Berwald about his classes and Berwald asking him about his. When they reached the sheltered part of the walkway, Berwald shut his umbrella and nearly let out a sound of protest when Tino removed his arm from his. His arm was beginning to get cold…

'Okay, I've got to dash,' Tino told him they reached the outside of the library. 'My lecture starts in about five minutes.'

Berwald nodded and said, 'Good luck with it.'

Tino smiled that smile that made Berwald's heart skip several beats. 'Thanks, Ber. Good luck with your studying! Don't overwork yourself, okay?'

He let out a soft laugh at Tino's words and nodded once again. An awkward pause fell between them then, one where Berwald couldn't help but rake his eyes over Tino's face. He was so pretty, after all…

'I'll see you tomorrow, yeah?' Tino asked him, breaking the silence and smiling gently. 'At Eduard's?'

Berwald nodded curtly and managed a small grin. Tino waved a hand in farewell and started walking towards his class. Berwald watched him go, then turned on his heel to continue his journey to the library, albeit with a huge blush running across his cheeks and his heart threatening to escape his chest.

 _Why is he so_ damn _cute?_

 **.**

His thumb hovered over his phone screen, uncertain and wary. It was still too early to contact the person with whom he wanted to speak, but he was getting restless and he _needed_ to know what was going on. So without another moment's hesitation, he hit 'CALL', brought the phone to his ear and waited. The ringing tone only went twice before a familiar voice filled the speaker.

 _'_ _Hello?'_

He swallowed. 'Hello _…_ It's Braginski.'

 _'_ _Ah, hello Ivan!'_ the voice on the other end exclaimed. _'I was wondering when you would call… although you are rather early. I did say to wait at least a month or so, didn't I?'_

Ivan sighed. 'I did, but I'm getting impatient. I would like to know what's going on. How am I supposed to help you out with all this if you don't keep me in the loop? And how do I know that I _want_ to get involved with your plan, as you've asked me to do so many times, unless I know what the situation is?'

He heard the voice grumble something unintelligible before saying, in a clearer tone, _'Look, it's a bit more complicated than I meant it to be. They still don't know the details, you know… I haven't exactly made contact with them yet.'_

Rubbing his temple with his fingertips, Ivan resisted the urge to start screaming. 'It's been almost a month! Surely you'd have gained their trust somehow?'

 _'_ _Well, no. I'm trying to remain invisible until they're ready. I've been keeping an eye on them… and shit, Ivan, they're_ ruthless _when it comes to criminals. You remember all those news reports about some criminals being found in strange circumstances—like being hung from the roof by their ankles and being found unconscious in alleyways after being stopped from raping a woman?—yeah, that was them… or at least some of them.'_

'So do you think they'll be ready any time soon?' Ivan asked, smiling when Irina walked past him to head into the kitchen. 'I mean, surely it's time?'

 _'_ _Soon, Ivan,'_ they told him. _'But that being said, they work well in a team. I told you about Arthur trying to recruit those German brothers, yes?'_

'You did. Was he successful?'

 _'_ _Ha, no! They've allied themselves with these five for now, and they've proven to work well together.'_ Ivan couldn't help but grin at the voice's excited tone. _'Everything's coming together slowly… soon I'll tell them what's going on, who I am and then you and your sisters will come in. And next time_ I'll _contact you, not the other way around.'_

'Yes, yes, alright,' Ivan mumbled. 'But, while I've got you on the phone… something's happened, and I think you should know about it.'

Ivan stopped once Irina came back out. She sent him a quizzical look and he hurriedly shook his head. 'Later,' he mouthed to her and she nodded in acknowledgement before disappearing into her office.

 _'_ _What do I need to know? Is it serious? Did someone get hurt? Are you okay?'_

As they threw questions at him, Ivan wondered how to tell them. He decided to be blunt, and he said, 'I saw Alfred about two weeks ago.'

The voice spluttered into silence. It was a full minute before they spoke again. _'And? What happened? Did you speak to him?'_

'More like he spoke to me,' Ivan explained. 'He wants me to come back. I told him no. The last thing I want is to go back to him… especially after what happened.'

 _'_ _And then? Surely he can't have accepted your answer? He's more stubborn than that—'_

'I told him I was working for you. But I didn't mention you by name, so he doesn't know the details.'

A heavy pause settled between them and Ivan felt his palms become clammy. It took another still moment before the voice spoke again.

 _'_ _That was a bold move, Ivan. Did he believe you?'_

'Yes, he believed me. He was also very upset… We almost started fighting, but I managed to back away before something serious happened.' Ivan shuddered as Alfred's threat swam in his head. 'He… was his usual charming self, shall we say?'

 _'_ _He threatened you, you mean?'_

Ivan remained quiet. But his silence clearly spoke louder and he heard the voice huff angrily. ' _Seriously, Ivan, that was risky. But I'm glad he believed you… even though you're not really working for me at all.'_

'Yes, well, _he_ doesn't know that, does he?' Ivan told them. 'As long as he believes that I'm a threat to him now that I've got a "new boss", then everything should work out fine, should it not?'

 _'_ _I should certainly hope so. We're getting too close to getting somewhere with all this for it to fall to shit,'_ the voice groused. _'Also, I've just noticed something… you haven't said my name once during this call. Are you being followed? Are you outside? Are you being recorded?'_

Blowing out a breath through his nose, Ivan said quietly, 'No, I'm at home. But ever since Alfred turned up out of the blue and found both me and my sisters, I'm taking precautions. I don't like how… easily he managed to find us. He could be listening right now, and I don't want to give you away now, do I? As you say, we don't want to this turn to shit.'

 _'_ _I understand… Looks like we'll have to be very careful from here on out. We don't want anyone getting hurt.'_ Ivan jolted when a loud noise came from the voice's end of the line. There was a series of cussing and crackling while the owner of the voice moved around on the other side. _'Listen, I've got to go, but I'll call you. Keep yourself out of trouble and if Alfred shows up again, call me.'_

'I will, and you take care of yourself, okay?'

The voice laughed. _'I'll try. Talk to you soon.'_

The call ended with an effective _beep_ , and Ivan wanted nothing more than to yell out his frustration. When was this guy ever going to be straight with him? Surely it wasn't that hard to recruit five supers who were, clearly, a part of the cause?

Ivan then wondered if his life was ever going to be simpler than it was. But he knew that would never be the case. Life was hard when you were a super, and Ivan was perhaps one of the few who knew just how hard it could be.

* * *

 _ **To be continued...**_


	19. Chapter 18

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Himaruya Hidekazu. The plot of this AU belongs to myself and theartisserie.**

* * *

 _"_ _Knowledge is power. Information is liberty. But to what extent?"_

 **o**

Standing outside the door to Eduard's dormitory, Matthias scowled. _All this time he's been next door,_ he thought as he bore holes into the wood with his glare. _God damn it._

Lukas seemed to sense his annoyance. 'I know. It's annoying, isn't it?'

'That's a bloody understatement,' Matthias grumbled. He let out a sigh. 'Come on, let's get this over with. I'm too damn impatient!'

He watched as Lukas' mouth lifted at the corners. 'No, you never were one to sit still.'

Allowing a small grin to form, Matthias knocked loudly on Eduard's door. They only had to wait a few seconds before Eduard's face met their own, and an optimistic expression replaced the nervous one that had been there moments before.

'Ah, you're here!' he cried. 'Come in, come in,' he said as he stepped aside to let Matthias and Lukas in. 'We have much to discuss.'

Matthias and Lukas exchanged a brief look—a quick quirk of the eyebrows and some urging with their eyes for the other to go in first—before Lukas rolled his eyes and walked in, squeezing Matthias' hand once behind him then letting go. Going in after him, Matthias sent Eduard a tiny smile, one that didn't reach his eyes. Hearing the door shut, Matthias took in Eduard's dormitory, and his brows rose towards his hairline in surprise when he saw that Emil, Berwald and Tino were already seated around the coffee table.

'Oh, hey guys!' he exclaimed cheerfully. 'You're here early.'

'We haven't been here long,' Tino told him, grinning when Lukas came to sit next to him on a nearby chair. 'Although Emil's been here longer.'

'Got bored while waiting,' was his explanation as he stared at Matthias upside down as he craned his neck over the back of the couch. 'Thought I'd annoy him and try and get some early information out of him, but nope, he's tight-lipped as fuck.'

Eduard smiled secretively as he went around to stand next to the coffee table and loosely crossed his arms. 'Wanted to wait until everyone got here so that way I don't have to repeat myself, you know.'

'Boring,' Emil muttered and Matthias cracked a grin.

'In that case, I won't make you wait much longer,' Eduard said. 'Let's start.'

Matthias didn't notice the others' expectant expressions until Lukas aimed at him, 'You just gonna stand there or are you gonna sit down, Matt?'

He felt his face flush red in embarrassment. He stole the chair next to his boyfriend, flashing him a toothy, boyish smile, and was inwardly shocked at the faint blush that pinched Lukas' cheekbones. Lukas averted his gaze and landed it on Eduard, but Matthias didn't miss the cute smile that ghosted his lips.

'So Eduard,' Lukas began, frowning sightly, 'are you going to tell us about this mess you've gotten us into?'

'Yeah, and what's with that Arthur guy?' Tino added. 'Did you know about him and what he's doing to supers?'

'And what about the bombings and everything?' Emil brought up, leaning forward on his knees. 'Did you know you were leading us into that kind of trap?'

'Actually, before all that,' Berwald muttered, 'why us? Why did you get us involved in particular?'

'That's a good point, Ber,' Matthias grumbled, glaring at Eduard. 'What makes us so special as opposed to everyone else? Are you trying to get us killed or something?'

'Okay, wait, wait!' Eduard raised his hands in surrender, clearly flustered at all the questions. 'I know you have many questions—clearly—but there's something you need to know first before I answer any of them.' He moved closer towards the table and picked up what Matthias only then realised was a newspaper. 'Your friend that you've been fighting? You don't need to worry about him anymore.'

Puzzled, Matthias watched as Tino grabbed the newspaper from Eduard warily and as his eyes scanned the front page. They went wide in a kind of perplexed understanding and his mouth fell open.

'Shit…' He looked up at the others. 'The Rogue Assassin is dead.'

'What?' Emil blurted out while the others raised their eyebrows in shock. 'How? When? Who?'

'It doesn't say who,' Tino told him. 'It just says that he was found in his prison cell… My god, he was found in his prison cell _last week?'_ He scowled. 'Why has it taken so long for the public to find out if it was _last week_?' He glared at Eduard. 'Did you know about this?'

Eduard shook his head. 'I found out this morning as well. Let's say my sources are not as hardcore as you might think they are. And I'm asking the same questions as you… Why did the police hide it? It seems strange for them to do so…'

'Was it an inside job maybe?' Lukas suggested. 'If it was, it would explain why the police would keep it under tabs for so long… They wanted to be sure before they disclosed anything, perhaps?'

'Does it say how he was killed?' Berwald asked Tino, gesturing to the newspaper.

'Yeah, uh… it says that he was found with his throat slashed…' Grimacing, Tino added a quiet mumble of 'Ew,' before continuing with, 'and the knife was found cleaned of prints and blood.'

'So he was murdered, is that what you're saying?' Emil asked him, and when he received an affirmative nod, he let out a long breath. 'Well… the Rogue Assassin got assassinated… Who would have thought? But _why?_ '

' _Fuck!_ '

Everyone turned to Matthias as he let out his curse, the action sudden. He wanted to hit something, to lash out and be rid of his anger. _How could this have happened? Fuck!_ He knew that everything had gone to waste, that all their previous efforts had all been for nothing. He was mad. _Extremely mad._ While the Rogue Assassin had done some horrible things throughout the past few months he had been in action, Matthias hadn't wanted him dead. No… he had been much more useful to him alive.

As he ran his hands through his hair in frustration, Matthias saw Lukas look at him in concern and he had raised an eyebrow in query. It took Matthias a moment to answer, but when he did, he struggled to keep his voice steady. 'He was the only source we had who would lead us to Anne. Without him… she's truly done for.'

Matthias felt guilt form in his stomach when Anne's name passed his lips. Since he had gotten out of hospital, Anne hadn't crossed his mind once. He felt like a terrible friend because of it, and his stomach churned at the thought of something horrible having happened to her during his time of ignorance. The news of the Rogue Assassin's death shook him awake and had brought her kidnapping rushing back.

'That's not true,' Eduard said quietly and he met the eyes of all of them as they shifted their gaze from Matthias' tormented expression to him.

'What do you mean?' Matthias asked him. 'He was the only link to her! How are we supposed to find out who he was working for when he's not working for them anymore? He's _dead_.'

'Yes, I know. But that doesn't mean the whole thing is done for,' Eduard reasoned, and Matthias was intrigued by the furtive glint in his eyes. 'There's a lot more to the story than the Rogue Assassin… and your friend.'

'Like what?' Tino aimed at him, folding the newspaper and placing it back on the table next to Eduard.

Eduard sighed and then crossed his arms further up his chest in a defensive manner. 'My sources… and various other people have come up with a few theories, most of which make more sense than the ones we thought originally. Theories about who the Rogue Assassin was working for and considering the information you've found and the things you've gone through, I'm starting to think it's now all true.'

'Such as?' Emil prompted, waving his hand for Eduard to keep going.

'Such as the fact that the Rogue Assassin was tied to a local mafia gang, and this local mafia gang is connected to something much bigger,' Eduard elaborated. His eyes flashed as he added, 'And this something much bigger… I'm afraid we're at a bit of a loss as to what it is. I have a few ideas, but I need to be sure before I tell them to you. Don't want to lead you off somewhere for nothing, you know.'

'You've done that already…' Matthias muttered in a displeased tone. Lukas sent him a pointed look that clearly told him to shut up before turning back to Eduard.

Eduard took no notice of Matthias' comment as he continued. 'Let me explain one thing first, before I go into the theories. We know for certain that the Rogue Assassin was working for two separate people, but who are somehow tied together. One of them is the head of one the local mafias and the other... well, the other is a little bit more complicated.'

Berwald frowned deeply at that. 'What do you mean by "complicated"?'

'Well...' Eduard paused and cocked his head to the side in thought before letting out a resigned sigh. 'Okay, let me ask you this: why do you guys do what you do? Fighting crime behind a mask, correcting injustice when the people who're supposed to be fixing all these problems are pretty much incompetent, amongst other things. Why do you do it?'

Matthias immediately opened his mouth to reply, but much to his surprise, it was Emil who beat him to it. 'It's called "being a good person",' he said flatly. 'I thought that was obvious.'

'Yes, that is true. But,' Eduard said, lifting a finger, 'why would you care about fixing someone else's mess when no one cares about you? About supers? About how we're constantly judged and ostracised and how there's nothing being done to fix that?'

There was a moment of silence. Matthias found himself thinking deeply about Eduard's questions. He knew the answers to them, of course. He had known them since he had started fighting on the streets and chasing criminals. He had known them since he and Lukas were teenagers, whose lives had been surrounded with all kinds of violence. He had known them since he found out he had the ability to do something _good_. But in the end, it was Tino who voiced his thoughts.

'But that's part of the reason why we do all this, right?' He looked around at the others for confirmation, and was met by nods and murmurs of agreement. 'To change that? If we try to fix things, well... maybe people will finally see that we're not so bad after all, you know? That we're doing something worthwhile and that there's no need to be afraid of us.'

'There we go!' Eduard turned to point at him and a massive smile split his cheeks. 'That's exactly the answer I was looking for. And you know what, that's the view that most of us share. That as supers, we should be fighting for the greater good, because our abilities allow us to do that—and that maybe by doing so, we can change how people see us.' He swept an arm to gesture to all of them. 'You've heard the stories. You _are_ the stories. All the supers you hear about on the news and all the things you've done yourselves—we're all using similar means to work towards a common goal here. Working in the shadows, not caring for recognition—all for the greater good of both society and how we fit into it.'

'And your point is?' Lukas asked, raising an eyebrow.

'My point is,' Eduard said softly, and Matthias saw his eyes darken, 'while you and I can certainly speak for the majority of supers… there are groups that don't agree with us. Ones that have more... _direct_ ways of dealing with things. And there's one group in particular that ties into all of this, one which has been making more noise than the others… and not in a good way.'

The five of them sent confused yet alarmed looks to each other. This was certainly news to Matthias, and he could see in the others' faces that it was news to them as well. Throughout his young life, Matthias had never known of other supers doing things unless they ended up on the news… and it was often to tell the city that they had been captured and imprisoned for crimes they had committed against them all. What these crimes had been, Matthias had never known. But he had the feeling he was about to find out what exactly got a super blacklisted.

At the anxious looks being sent his way, Eduard let out a breath and sat down the edge of the coffee table. He looked at each man separately before saying, 'Do you guys remember that incident that happened in the city about… say, two, three years ago? The one where they shut the main parkland and aquatic centre for about half a year for repairs?'

Matthias immediately raised his hand with a cry of, 'Yes!' He blushed slightly at the attention that was thrown his way at his outburst, but continued with, in a quieter voice, 'I remember because the timing of the shutdown screwed up the grand final of the football knockout. We had to go to the other side of the city to find a suitable park to play in.'

Lukas chuckled softly. 'I forgot that you played football in high school.'

Matthias sent him a strange look. 'How could you have forgotten? I played every year since year seven!'

'Even I remember that,' Emil piped up, smiling evilly. 'I also remember you saying that you had gone to every game, Lukas. _And_ how good he looked in his uniform—'

'Emil, if you value your life, _shut up_ ,' Lukas hissed in Norwegian and Emil continued to grin wickedly at his step brother. He switched back to English as he aimed at Eduard with his cheeks pink, 'Yes, the incident rings a bell—what of it?'

Smiling at Lukas' awkwardness—and he knew that he hadn't _really_ forgotten his football games in high school—Matthias watched as Eduard's expression turned sour and as he crossed his arms over his chest once more in apparent irritation. 'Well… if everything had gone to plan, maybe the incident wouldn't have happened…'

Berwald made an inquisitive sound. 'You were involved in it?'

Eduard looked sheepish, like a child who had been caught red-handed stealing food from the pantry. 'Sort of… I've personally had dealings with them before. In the past, you know. But look, it's a long story and there's a hell of a lot of background. Basically all you need to know for me to explain things is this: that incident involved two sets of supers: one like us, and another, like I said before, that has a more direct way of doing things. It's this direct group that I want to tell you about.'

'Hold on, wait.' Emil straightened his back and pointed at Eduard. 'When you first came to us, you told us you were one of us: a super—and obviously you'd have to be if you've had dealings with these guys and all. But uh… what exactly is your power?'

Matthias exchanged a quick look with Lukas as Eduard took in a deep breath at Emil's question. It was one they had wanted answered since they had met Eduard—amongst all the others—so they strained their hearing as Eduard opened his mouth.

'Yes…' Eduard began slowly. 'It was actually due to them that I found out about my power in the first place, but that's another story. To put it simply, I can pick things up really quickly and… I always remember them.' He flushed deeply when he added, 'I don't want to sound vain or anything, but I've got super intelligence. There.'

'Nothing wrong with that,' Tino said kindly, smiling at him gently. 'That's just gonna help us with getting the answers we need.'

Glancing at Tino gratefully, Eduard coughed once and turned serious once more. 'So yeah, um… I was kind of involved in that incident, but the incident itself isn't what I want to focus on, like I said. The group of supers who did much of the actual fighting against our side… I'm afraid we underestimated them greatly. You see, the group is made up of a few people and they've been in action for a little under five years. They've been quiet since the incident, but before then… god, they were a nightmare. They certainly knew how to fuck things up, that's for sure.'

'Sounds fun,' Berwald mumbled.

Eduard smiled wryly at him. 'They're all troublemakers, yeah. I wish I knew about all of them, but they know how to keep themselves hidden. There's a few members, and they all have unique powers, yet the only one whose power I know best is the leader's.'

'Well, it's better than nothing, I suppose,' Lukas said wisely and he held out a hand to Eduard to continue, which he did.

'Very well.' He put his hands in his lap. 'The leader of this group goes by the name of Alfred Jones. He's around our age, and he's had it against the government for a very long time—since he was a kid, I think. His motivations have always been to bring the government down and to make a good name for supers, so we can live in society normally and such. But over the past year or so, those motivations have changed. They've turned more… sinister, which I guess fits his power perfectly. He's kind of like you two,' he said to Matthias and Lukas, 'as he can generate a certain force. While you generate fire and energy, he generates electricity. But within that he can also paralyse you, using a whole bunch of scientific stuff that I'm really not in the mood to explain. In other words, he's dangerous, and he'll do whatever it takes to get what he wants.'

'He sounds like a piece of work,' Tino muttered.

'That he is,' Eduard replied. 'As for the other members... I know there's ones capable of manipulation and such, and that Alfred has a right-hand man who has been with him for a couple of years... but sadly, given the little past with them, I've never been able to find out much about them individually. Which leads me to my next point.'

'Which is?' Lukas asked dully.

'What do you know of the Carriedos?'

A collective, confused murmur filled the living room, and Matthias scratched his head as he tried to think. The name sounded familiar, though where he had heard it, he couldn't recall. But the answer came sooner than later in the form of Berwald's deep tone.

'They're one of the two mafia gangs in the city,' he said, crossing his arms and clearing his throat. 'They're a Spanish family line, and they've been around since the eighties. But it's not just Spaniards who are a part of the gang: there are members from Venezuela, Mexico, Colombia and a few from Cuba, at least the last time I checked. There might be more or less, but the Spanish have always been there, and continue to be. About four years ago, the head of the mafia was killed in a shootout, and his only successor was his nephew, and he was eighteen at the time. I don't know his first name, but I know he's been in action since he succeeded his uncle. They're known for their drugs trafficking and a few murders, but they've taken a deep interest in weapons handling as of late.'

A stunned silence enveloped them at what Berwald had just told them, and Eduard let out an impressed sound. Berwald's expression turned into an embarrassed one and he set his gaze on his shoes. All Matthias could say was, 'How the hell do you know that?' after a few moments of just sitting in shock with his mouth open.

Berwald looked at him and Matthias frowned at the stormy look that encompassed his eyes. His mouth was pressed into a thin line and this was one of those moments where Berwald came off as extremely scary: not only were his eyes clouded over with some kind of rage and his mouth thinned, but his jaw was set so tightly the muscles were popping out and his hands were curled into fists. But to Matthias and the others—minus Eduard—this was Berwald being _afraid_ and, Matthias was alarmed to pick out, vulnerable.

'It's a long story,' Berwald told him quietly, 'and not one I want to tell.' He averted his gaze and let out a soft sigh. Matthias watched as Tino placed a hand on his shoulder gingerly and as he sent him a small smile when Berwald moved to glance at him.

'You don't have to tell us,' Eduard whispered, before going on in a louder voice, 'but you're right. The Carriedos have been around a long time, and they're well-known on the ground level. The reason I'm bringing them up is because of the Rogue Assassin. You see… the Rogue Assassin worked for the Carriedos… and since the Rogue Assassin also had dealings with Alfred…'

Emil let out a strangled sound. 'You think Alfred and his supers are back... and are now partnered with the Carriedo mafia?'

'Amongst others, yes.'

'Others?' Tino groaned into his hands. 'What others? Isn't one group of rogue supers and a mafia enough?'

'Not to Alfred, no,' Eduard muttered, clearly displeased. 'And that leads me to the next thing. We have reason to believe that these "others" include the Adnan mafia, Arthur Kirkland and a fellow who's been working with him for a long time now… someone called Abel. We haven't found out his surname yet. But yes… these individuals are all dangerous and once they're together… who knows what could hit us.'

Matthias felt his blood run cold. Everyone who lived in the city knew of the Adnans and what they were capable of, and the five certainly knew about Arthur. If what Eduard said was true… then they were in more danger than they had previously thought. But then a thought came Matthias' way when he realised something. _The night at the warehouse!_

'Hold on just one second,' he said, and he met Eduard's curious gaze. 'You're saying that the Carriedos and Alfred are working together… I just thought of something. That night at the warehouse with the Carriedos, the Rogue Assassin had this bag, and it was full of cash. Was he being paid by Alfred? And you also said that some of his members have powers of manipulation…' He breathed in deeply. 'Is there any chance one of them may have been there?'

There was a pregnant pause before Lukas turned to Matthias. 'You think that you were taken over by someone else? Someone who tried make you kill the Rogue Assassin?'

'That's exactly what I'm thinking.'

'Okay, say that's the case, Matt… what does Alfred have to do with Anne?' Berwald rebutted. 'Does Alfred know her?'

'In that case, was it the Carriedos?' Matthias threw in. 'All we know is that he got paid for something, and when Ludwig and I got interviewed by the police the day after Anne was kidnapped, the officer we spoke to said they had reason to believe that it was the Rogue Assassin behind it. And if he's dead… why is she still missing? None of it makes sense!'

'To be honest, I don't know how the woman fits into all this,' Eduard said gravely. 'Maybe she's had history with the Carriedos? Maybe they're using her to get to you?'

'But why? We've never dealt with them personally,' Emil added. 'How could they know who we are?'

'Wait, speaking of the Carriedos—I thought that the mafias had beef with each other?' Tino pointed out. 'Why would they be working together?'

Eduard shrugged. 'We don't know yet. But we know that both mafias, Arthur and his man _and_ Alfred have been meeting up on the off occasion to have some kind of discussion. We think that Arthur's intention is money-based and that he's drawing on Alfred's anti-government attitude as a way to get it, but as for the mafias, we're at a blank. And also that night you went to see Arthur… the night of the bombings… Antonio was meeting up with mafias _outside_ of the city. But for what, we have no clue, which is why we're trying to get people in the field to find out.

'As for the bombings themselves... there's been talk all over the news that supers were responsible for the bombs, thanks to Arthur. But a few ideas have come up, and we're now wondering whether or not Arthur was intending to make the government more afraid of supers and to show them that they mean business, which is exactly what Alfred wants. Plus with the government noticing, Arthur's declaration of loyalty to the city has been recognised by them, which will lead to him getting the money he wants from them.'

There was a pause, and it was followed by Emil letting out something close to a growl. 'What the fuck have you gotten us involved in?'

For the first time that morning, Eduard looked scared. He opened his mouth to, perhaps, defend himself, but Emil wasn't finished.

'You do know what this has done to us, don't you?' Emil said in a low voice and Matthias was shocked to see anger spark in his eyes. 'We almost got pummelled by the Carriedos that night at the warehouse. Matthias was this close to _killing_ someone _and_ all of us nearly died when the bombs went off. For god's sake, Matthias was in hospital for a _week_ —with how many stitches?'

Matthias shifted uncomfortably in his seat. 'Twenty-six.'

Everyone grimaced at the number momentarily before Emil resumed his rant. 'Exactly! Who knows who'll be next if we go on like this! I'm sorry, but if that's what's gonna happen, then we're not gonna do it. We're not going to risk our lives like that again!'

'There's no one else!' Eduard yelled and Emil abruptly fell silent. 'You have to understand—there is no one other than you who isn't afraid of doing something, who hasn't been captured by the authorities or who have been recruited by people like Alfred. There's so few of us who want to make a _peaceful_ change, and one that doesn't involve monsters like the Carriedos, the Adnans and Arthur. I understand that the way I approached you was a mistake and I get that what's happened has not been good… but please… you're our only hope at the moment. You five, and Ludwig and Gilbert. I'm going to tell them what I've told you at a later date since they couldn't make it today. But seriously… we don't know who else to ask.'

No one said a word. Matthias didn't know who to look at, so he opted for his shoes. His mind was swimming with everything Eduard had told them. Alfred… the mafia heads… Anne… Everything was just _too_ much. But he could see where he was coming from. If they were going to let these guys get away with what Eduard thought they were doing, who knew what was going to happen?

Eduard heaved a great sigh. 'I know that I'm the last person who should be telling you to trust me… but I am also the only person who can help you… and you're the only people left who can help us.' He straightened his back and stared at the five men in determination. 'Yes, I set you out on a series of tests. Yes, I put you in a hell of a lot of danger and yes… it is because of me that you're now neck deep in all of this… But I honestly can't think of any other people who are more pure and more willing to put themselves on the line for a good cause—'

'Be careful, Eduard,' Lukas interrupted, and everyone's heads turned to him. His eyes flashed and Matthias saw a hint of dismay go across them. 'Be very, very careful… One wrong word and we're gone. You're _this_ close—' He held up his pointer finger and thumb a millimetre away from each other. '—to getting a good punch in the face.'

'By all means, punch me if it makes you feel better,' Eduard retorted, 'but my point still stands. I have proof if you don't believe me.'

'And what proof is that?' Emil asked, frowning deeply. 'What proof do you possibly have that labels us as "doing things for a good cause"?'

As Eduard stared at Emil for a moment or so, Matthias decided that he did not like the look that he had in his eyes. They were glazed over with what appeared to be so much knowledge—he wondered how Eduard didn't go mad from it all, if what he said about his intelligence was true. To what extent did Eduard know about them all? Did he know just about their powers… or did he know _everything?_

 _Don't be stupid, Matt, he's not a clairvoyant. He can't possibly know everything about you._

'Every time I've sent you a letter, you've responded,' Eduard replied slowly, shifting his gaze from person to person and bringing Matthias out of his thoughts. 'Every time I've hinted at a mission, you answered the call straightaway. Every time you made yourselves present in a moment of danger, you fought back with everything you had.' He held out his arms to them. 'And you're here, aren't you? You're here because you care. You're here because you want to know what's going on, yeah, but you're also here because you want to do something… don't you?' He ran his hands through his hair. 'I wouldn't ask if we weren't desperate.'

Once again, there was silence. Lukas ran his hands over his face, and Emil slid down in his seat, sighing heavily. Tino and Berwald merely glanced at each other, puzzled, and Matthias thought, really thought, about what Eduard had just told them. His brain hurt from it, but his stomach stirred and he had the overwhelming urge to get to his feet and _do something_. He had the urge to seek out this Alfred dude and shake his wits out of him in order to make him see sense. And to give Arthur a good punch in the face. Then he realised he didn't know what the hell he was thinking about. He let out a quiet groan.

'Just… think about it, okay? I'm not going to force you into this and I'm not asking you to give me an answer straight away.' Blowing out through his nose, Eduard managed a small smile. 'It may seem ironic, given what's happened, but the last thing I want you to do is to join something against your own will.'

At his words, Matthias glanced at the others and raised an eyebrow in query. Everything that Eduard had told them was a lot to take in… but Matthias could see that the others had done some hard thinking throughout their discussion with him. He had a wordless conversation of sorts with them, one where their expressions clearly spelt out what they wanted and one which gave the answer to Matthias' question.

'Well, you haven't given us much of a choice, have you?' Lukas told him, a kind smile on his face.

Eduard blinked in confusion, even more so when the others looked at him with determination. Matthias turned to him, albeit this time with a huge grin splitting his cheeks.

'We're in.'

* * *

 ** _To be continued..._**

* * *

 **A/N: Sorry about the long wait guys! Uni has been insane D: but now I'm on holidays so expect more chapters from here hueheuheu**

 **Also check out our Friction playlist that Mona and I have put together (more info in the post):**

 **post/146110209879/listen-on-youtube-read-on-fanfictionnet-hello**


	20. Chapter 19

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Himaruya Hidekazu. The plot of this AU belongs to myself and theartisserie.**

* * *

 _"_ _We are the reckless, we are the wild youth, chasing visions of our futures."—_ Youth _by Daughter_

 **o**

'Are you sure this is a good idea?'

'Yes, I am very sure. You do trust me right?'

'Well… we _did_ just meet—'

'Listen, are you in this or not? I have no one else to help me with this. You're my only hope.'

' _Why do you have to say it like that?_ Now I can't back out!'

'Good, then let's go.'

'Wait—this isn't over! We need to talk about this…'

'We'll talk later. Right now… We have a job to do.' She let out a sigh. 'And a life to save.'

 **.**

 _16/10; 11:47pm:_

 ** _URGENT._**

 _There has been a development, and a very, very important one at that. It requires all of you, but I need to brief you._

 _Meet me in my dorm at 10am sharp on Monday. I've checked your timetables and it seems none of you have anything on. If you can't make it for whatever reason, I'll get someone to let you know the details._

 _So… It begins…_

 _Is it bad that I'm feeling really excited about all this?_

 **.**

Standing in front of his dormitory door, Emil was seriously considering getting a new roommate.

It was late Sunday night, almost eleven o'clock, and Emil had just suffered through five hours' worth of studying in the library for an upcoming Physics exam. Not that he hadn't spent almost the entire week, starting from after the meeting with Eduard up until that point, studying for this damn test. He thought that he should at least be able to get some good night's sleep after dealing with the effort of cramming his brain with quantum physics and electromagnetism—not to mention revising over atomic and nuclear physics and optics, which had been more than a pain in the arse. But it appeared that his bastard of a roommate did not seem to have a single care in the world about Emil… as per usual.

He scowled as he tried for perhaps the sixth time to open his dormitory door, but to no avail. The key simply would not turn in the lock and Emil screamed inwardly in frustration. Only his idiot of a roommate would somehow deadlock the door. Checking his phone to see if his roommate had replied to the copious number of text messages he had sent him, his mood soured even more when he saw nothing from him.

 _That does it_ , he thought. He hadn't wanted to bang on the door to get the attention of his idiotic roommate as it was late, and the last thing he wanted was to make a huge amount of noise and get told off by the other residents on the floor. _Again._ But he was tired, grumpy and extremely annoyed and, to an even larger extent, desperate. So he raised his hand, his fingers curled into a fist and ready to knock, but he paused when he heard something shuffling from the inside. A dash of hope went through his chest and he waited to see what would happen.

But when the shuffling turned into a new sound, Emil's body and mind froze in horror. Then his cheeks, neck and ears assumed a dark red hue when he realised in full what he was hearing, and he pressed a hand over his mouth to stop himself from gasping. A series of loud moans and low groans—one very high in pitch, and the other deep and resonating—could be heard, along with the undeniable slapping of skin against skin. Emil hurriedly moved away from the door, dumping his bag of books in front of it, and raced to the top of the stairs leading down to the ground floor.

 _Seriously?_ _Of all nights, he brought a woman home to fuck? On a Sunday? Doesn't he realise that classes start again tomorrow? Little prick…_ Sitting down on the first step and burying his head in his hands, Emil resisted the overwhelming urge to screech in irritation. _I need to be at the library at fucking nine o'clock in the morning to study before I go to Eduard's! Is it too much to ask to have my bed? Ugh…_

Dragging his palms over his face to settle them on his chin, Emil sighed heavily. Then he began to consider his options. He knew that if he went up to his step-brother's dormitory he and Matthias would gladly let him stay the night or until his roommate decided to sort his life out—but that was the last thing he wanted to do. Firstly, it was extremely late and, knowing the pair of them, they would be either sleeping or studying at this time of night. Secondly, now that Emil knew about their situation, he had the feeling that they would either be indulging in each other by making out or doing what his roommate and his latest pick of the week were currently doing in their hallway. Emil most certainly did _not_ want to interrupt that. He would be scarred for life if he witnessed that… Some things were better left as they were.

But Emil also didn't want to showcase himself as the weak, first-year teenager who couldn't take care of himself. He didn't want to burden Lukas or Matthias—or anyone for that matter—with his predicaments, and he definitely didn't want to admit defeat and ask for help.

 _Might as well go for a walk,_ he told himself, standing up and going down the stairs. _I can clear my head and then figure out a way to get some sleep… somewhere…_

Digging his hands into his pockets as he left the dormitory building, Emil made his way down the path and through the gate leading out of the university. The air was crisp and cool, not as cold as it had been the past few days, but it was enough to make Emil feel a little colder than he had been inside. Not that he minded… he liked the cooler weather anyway.

The night was silent, which was odd for a Sunday in the city. There were no cars driving by, no buses honking away at ungodly hours in the early morning and there was no one about, no stray stragglers singing drunkenly and no romantic couples walking home together. It was just Emil on the footpath, with the corner shop in the near distance being the only shop with its lights on. He smiled when he recognised the sign, and shook his head as he went past it. _Ah… memories…_

But as Emil walked by, he suddenly wasn't the only person on the footpath anymore. He stumbled forwards when something hit the backs of his calves and, turning around to glare at the culprit, froze when his eyes took in something else.

Or rather… some _one_ else.

Emil took in a pair of round, brown eyes staring at him in shock, which belonged to a little boy no older than twelve years old. It appeared he had fallen over after crashing into Emil as he was seated upon the concrete. The shock was quickly replaced by fear and the boy jumped to his feet and backed a considerable amount away from him. But his efforts were futile as he bumped into another person, one whom Emil recognised as the shopkeeper of the corner shop.

The shopkeeper had always terrified Emil, especially at a young age, and he still managed to terrify him. He was tall, with a humungous stature—something Emil was already used to what with his father being a similar size—but what made him scary was the permanent frown on his face and the coldness his eyes held. He grabbed the boy by the back of his shirt and a low growl left his throat. Emil became very concerned for the boy's safety as the shopkeeper shook him in anger.

'You little thief!' he snarled, eyes bulging in fury. 'You think you can get away from me? Give it back to me, you swine, before I call the police!'

Emil, horrified at his behaviour, glowered heavily at the shopkeeper and called out to him, 'Hey! That's no way to treat a child!'

Suddenly all his youthful days in the corner shop came rushing back to him when the shopkeeper's eyes landed on him, swirling with rage. But he held his ground and his chin up.

'This little shit stole from me!' the shopkeeper shouted at him, glaring down at the little boy, who clutched his jacket close to him. 'I ought to teach him a lesson!'

'Or you could let him off with a warning, as any other shopkeeper would,' Emil said matter-of-factly. 'Or I could always call the police myself and tell them there's child abuse occurring on the streets in the middle of the night.'

Emil thought he had seen the true epitome of anger that night with the Rogue Assassin when Matthias lost control and almost killed the guy, but when the shopkeeper's face burned red and his teeth became bared, Emil couldn't help but swallow in fear. But when his eyes landed on the child and saw that he was looking at him in a sort of grateful confusion, Emil knew what he had to do.

So he walked up the boy, knelt down to his height and said, in a soft voice, 'Can you give back what you stole from the man? I think he would really like that.'

The boy gazed at him curiously with those almond-shaped eyes—a pretty shape, Emil thought—and brought his hands from his jacket to his sides. Then he took out a few chocolate bars from his jacket pocket and, with shaking fingers, held them out for the shopkeeper to take. The shopkeeper snatched them from him and shoved him away rather harshly. The boy tripped, but managed to catch his balance at the last moment.

'Steal from me again and I won't be so nice next time,' the shopkeeper rumbled. 'And you!' He brought his face so close to Emil's that he almost gagged from the bad breath that wafted under his nose. 'Patronise me again and you'll be sorry. I won't forget your face, you little twerp.' Then he stalked back to his shop, his footfalls loud on the pathway.

Silence resumed its post on the street. But it was soon broken by a quiet, trembling intake of breath and Emil, at the sound, turned to look at the boy. He was standing with his head hung and his hands covering his face. Emil was alarmed to see his little shoulders quivering, and when he let out a soft sob, Emil was at a loss as to what to do. He had little experience with kids… and none at all with crying ones. Treading over to the little boy, Emil placed a hand on his shoulder gingerly, which caused him to remove his hands and stare teary-eyed at him.

'Hey, it's okay,' Emil whispered. 'There's no need to cry…' He paused, then asked him, 'What's your name?'

'Souta…' he mumbled under his breath shyly, sniffling and wiping his eyes with his sleeve.

Emil smiled gently at him, thought for a moment, and then said, 'Okay, Souta, how about I take you home? A little kid like you shouldn't be out alone at this time of night.'

Souta looked at him sharply with wide, frightened eyes and his mouth open. But Emil knew what he was going to say, so he cut him off with, 'I won't tell your parents anything… if that's what you're worried about.'

The little boy let out a sigh of what Emil could only label as relief, and he nodded vigorously. Then he looked at his shoes and muttered out a word of gratitude in a voice so quiet Emil almost didn't hear him. He stroked Souta's dark hair softly, albeit with a blush running across his cheeks. He thanked God that no one he knew was there to see what he was doing. He would never hear the end of it, especially from Lukas. But Emil couldn't exactly leave the poor boy alone, in the dark, late at night with no one to help him… he'd never forgive himself if he did. And it wasn't as if he had anything better to do anyway, not with his roommate being the little shit that he was.

'Shall we?' Emil asked him, and began to follow Souta as he went down the street in the direction Emil was going in originally.

He fell in line with Souta's pace and a comfortable silence fell between them. Glancing down at the top of his head, Emil took in the little boy that had crashed into the backs of his legs. He was a skinny thing, lanky and tall for what Emil assumed was his age. His hair was the colour of raven feathers, and just as glossy. A thought suddenly came his way as to how to get Souta to trust him—because Emil was a trustworthy person after all—and to make him feel less afraid.

'So… Souta,' he began. 'That's a cool name. Where's it from?'

'Japan,' was the reply, and Emil found himself smiling as Souta looked up at him, his eyes shining with pride. 'My _okaasan_ is from there. She and my dad met here, and then when I was born, we went back to Japan for a few years.' He grinned hugely at Emil. 'It's the best place in the world!'

Emil laughed lightly and put on a challenging tone as he said, 'Oh yeah? I know of a better place!'

Souta looked at him in alarm and stopped in his tracks, placing his hands on his hips in defiance. He stared Emil down, but then his expression slackened and his jaw dropped. Then his gaze was once again on the ground and his hands went behind his back.

'I don't know your name…' he mumbled, and Emil could see that his cheeks had taken a deep red hue. Emil told him his name and Souta glanced up at him, his narrowed eyes scanning Emil's face and his brow contracted in a frown. 'That doesn't sound like it's from here. You don't look like you're from here, either. You're too pretty to be from here.'

Emil blushed furiously at first, but then grinned wickedly. 'That's because I'm not. I only live here and speak the language. I'm from Iceland originally.'

Blinking, Souta tilted his head to the side and asked, as seriously as one could be, 'You come from an ice… land? Is that why your hair is so white?'

Unable to help himself, Emil burst out laughing. He hadn't laughed so hard in months as he clutched his stomach and wiped budding tears from the corners of his eyes. He couldn't get over how innocently adorable Souta's question had been and he ruffled his hair fondly. It was amazing how easily Emil clicked with this child, and he found himself telling him all about Iceland. While he was born there, Emil hadn't actually lived in Iceland for very long. But Souta didn't need to know that as he told him about the country he had visited more than once, his homeland. He told him about how cold it was and how beautiful it was, and how his hair wasn't white, but a very pale blond.

Souta hung onto his every word and his dark irises were lit up with such an intense intrigue as he spoke that Emil's eyebrows shot into his hairline in astonishment. A childish grin forced its way onto Souta's lips and he tugged at Emil's sleeve, demanding to hear more about the hot springs and the volcano that stopped the planes coming into the country, begged to hear more about the aurora borealis and the pretty colours it cast in the skies when it came.

When Emil had told him as much as he could about Iceland, Souta yelled, 'I wanna go to Iceland when I grow up!' then covered his mouth and giggled at how loud he had been.

And that was how it went on their trip to Souta's home. Emil told Souta about his heritage and his culture, and Souta told Emil everything he knew about Japan. Emil couldn't believe how such a tiny human could have so much knowledge about a place, but he listened as Souta rambled on about Tokyo and the deer in Nara, and all the ancient temples that he had visited when he was much younger, and the light blue yukata he still had from his grandmother, who had given it to him before he had left. _This is definitely better than Physics,_ he thought as he watched little Souta walk beside him. _And definitely better than listening to my roommate and his lady friend fucking in our dormitory._

They were having so much fun that Emil nearly forgot about what had happened earlier, when Souta had bumped into him and had looked at him in such fear from the pavement.

'Hey… Souta?' Souta paused in his explanation of what a mochi was and gazed at Emil expectantly. 'Can I ask you something?' When he nodded, Emil swallowed and asked him, 'What happened with you and that man at the shop? Why did you steal from him?'

Souta's face fell. Emil instantly felt guilty for asking, but was pleasantly surprised when he answered straight away.

'Because I could…' he said, fiddling with his fingers. 'And I like the feeling of sneaking around and doing things so people don't see me doing them. It's fun!' His expression soured. 'But for the first time, I got caught…'

Emil couldn't believe what he was hearing. It was as if he was twelve years old again, walking along the same path, feeling that surge of adrenaline he got when he went into that corner shop and walked out with his pockets feeling heavier. It was like he was that lonely, unsatisfied and puzzled child who had too much time on his hands all over again. However, unlike Souta, Emil had speed as an advantage, and he had _never_ gotten caught.

 _Perhaps I should offer him some advice…_ he thought, gazing at Souta. _No one gave me that advice…_

'There are better things you can use that skill of yours for,' Emil told him seriously. 'Trust me… I have.'

Souta looked at him strangely. 'You used to steal, too?'

Sighing, Emil saw no escape and no reason to lie. So he nodded. 'I did it for the thrill, like you. I was bored with my life and uh… well… let's just say I discovered something about myself when I was around ten that ended up helping me get away with it easily.' He smiled at Souta furtively. 'But that's a secret.'

'That's not fair!' Souta cried, causing Emil to laugh softly. 'You can't say that and then not tell me!'

'I might tell you one day,' he said to him, and he saw Souta's eyes light up. 'One day I might even show it to you… perhaps the next time we meet?'

The smile that grew on Souta's face made Emil's lips tug at the corners, and when he rapidly nodded his head, Emil couldn't help but chuckle. They didn't say anything more on the matter for when they turned the next corner, Souta pointed to the nearest house and said to Emil, 'That's my house.'

Blinking, Emil's heart suddenly clenched behind his ribs. He didn't know why, but he didn't want to leave Souta. He had grown strangely attached to the kid in the short time they known each other, but he also knew it would do him and Souta no good if he dwelled on the subject.

'Well,' he began, 'that's that, then.' He smiled at Souta and ruffled his hair once more. 'I guess I'll see you again someday. And remember this: use your skills for good. It'll get you further in life than if you continue like this.'

Souta grinned wolfishly at him and saluted him briefly. 'Yes, sir!'

Smiling softly, Emil nudged his arm and said, 'Go on, it's late. You need sleep.'

'Thank you for taking me home, Emil,' Souta said shyly. He gave Emil a quick hug and raced to the back end of his house. 'I'll catch you later!' he said loudly before disappearing.

Emil's entire face had gone red at Souta's affection, but when Souta went into his home, a smile so large that it hurt his cheeks crawled onto his lips. Taking one last look at the house, Emil turned to head home…

'You little fuckhead!'

Freezing, Emil snapped his head towards the person who had spoken and he felt the blood in his body stop flowing. On the other side of the street, he could make out a circle of people surrounding another person. Emil quickly hid himself from the streetlights and watched with wide eyes as one of the men from the circle—at least, he thought they were all men, judging by their builds—picked up the person from the middle and punched him. The person fell with a cry and another member of the circle grabbed the one who had hit him by the lapels of his jacket.

'Oi, not here, you idiot!' they hissed, though loud enough for Emil to hear from the other side of the road. 'Let's take him down that way. _Then_ you can beat his arse.'

Emil couldn't tell what was happening then, but soon, the members had picked up their victim and were dragging them down a side street between two houses opposite Souta's. Without another thought, Emil pulled up his hood and tied the strings against his neck. This situation called for his abilities.

Checking both ends of the road for any oncoming vehicles or watchful gaze, Emil jogged to the other side and flattened himself against the wall of the first house on the corner of the little street. As he waited for the voices of the gang members to fade away slightly, Emil's mind turned back to Souta, and he mused if Souta would become like him, a thief turned hero. Turning the corner and treading quietly along the length of the side street, he wondered what effect his words would have on the child, if they would cause an epiphany like the one Emil himself had experienced not too long ago…

 **.**

 _Emil's breath came out in shallow gasps. He had never been so scared._ I knew I should have gone yesterday! Should have listened to _Pabbi_ … Should have gone yesterday, _he screamed internally, watching the events in front of him unfold._

 _'_ _Get on the floor!' the man hollered, his face deformed under a sheer stocking. 'GET ON THE FUCKING FLOOR NOW OR I'LL SHOOT!'_

 _The people in the waiting room did as they were told, including Emil, despite being in the corner where he couldn't really be seen. But he wasn't taking any chances. These guys meant business… serious business._

 _Emil had merely gone to the bank that afternoon to open his new account, now that he was sixteen. He had meant to go yesterday, but he had not been in the mood to go._ Now look where that got you, _he reprimanded himself, swallowing heavily._

 _'_ _YOU!' one of the two robbers yelled at the blond teller in front of him. 'Get your manager before someone gets shot!'_

 _The teller didn't hesitate to rush into the back and bring out who was clearly the manager of the bank. She had her hands up in surrender and her eyes were scared._

 _The first robber who had shouted when they had entered held his gun against her head and dumped a bag on the counter in front of her. 'Start packing the bag, lady.'_

 _She didn't dare argue as she instructed her workers to do as they said. As the robbers pressed their guns against the tellers' and manager's heads, Emil's heart leapt into his throat. He watched with wide eyes as they shouted at the bankers, demanding that they throw all the cash they had into the black duffel bag they had dumped in front of them. From his corner, he could see the tears pouring down the bankers' cheeks and the fearful expressions the tellers had on their faces. Just seeing them that way made Emil's brain work overtime as he pondered on what to do._

 _He was closest to the door. He could escape unseen. He could call the police—if someone hadn't already—and have them deal with the issue. Yet… something was holding him back. Emil's eyes landed on the robbers again and realisation hit him so hard he nearly gasped out loud._

Oh god… _he thought._ I'm exactly like them.

 _Emil was suddenly overwhelmed with tremendous guilt. All those times he had gone into the corner shop, cocky and with his nose in the air, ready to piss off the shopkeeper by decreasing the items he had for sale, caused his stomach to form into a rock. Those petty thefts he had made, having stolen pockets upon pockets' worth of lollies and chocolates, a random can of food here and there, some gum because he liked the flavour… What made him better than these robbers? Sure, stealing lollies wasn't really the same as stealing money, but... who was to say he'd stop at that, if he continued this way?_

 _His super speed had opened the door for him to lead this kind of life, as he had done the odd robbery ever since he was ten. But there he sat, sixteen and afraid, and almost seven years of petty thieving had come to this._

Is that what I look like to other people? Is this what my actions cause? But… no, no! I'm a good person, I _am_ … aren't I?

 _He couldn't become like them. He_ couldn't _. He wouldn't… because, surely, he was better than that? Better than_ them _? Better than a child who sought fun in stealing sweets from a corner shop?_

 _Emil came to a conclusion. It was risky, he knew… but he had to change. He wouldn't dare be a part of the same category as these robbers any longer. So he lifted his hood over his head, tightened the strings so it wouldn't go flying off and stood up slowly. Then, in a blink of an eye, Emil_ ran _._

 **.**

As Emil raced after the assailants, he recalled the aftermath of his heroic action. He had been in the living room, having dinner with his father and step family, and the television had been playing in the background. Lukas had made the comment of pointing out the breaking news headline, and Emil, upon seeing it, had spat out his drink in shock. Even though no one could tell it was him, he had ended up on the news as the "bank robbery hero". That had been the beginning of his "career" as a good-doer superhuman, and he hadn't stopped since—clearly, since it was past midnight and he was off to save some poor man's soul instead of having gone back home to get some sleep.

Wind rushed through his hair as he continued to pursue the attackers. Even though he wasn't going at his fastest speed, Emil was going fast enough in order to catch up to the criminals and to remain unseen. He could see in the distance the man they had started to beat up near Souta's house being dragged by his arms, his feet lifeless as they stayed behind him. Emil tightened the strings of his hoodie some more—just in case—and hid behind a house's brick wall as the attackers suddenly stopped near the main road and formed another circle around their victim, whom they had thrown into the middle once again.

'What do you want from me?' the man whimpered, letting out a cry when one of the people in the circle aimed a kick at his stomach.

'You know what we want, you little piece of shit,' they growled. 'Give us what you owe and we'll leave you alone.'

 _Oh shit_ , Emil thought. He winced when the man received another kick to his stomach and when he spat out blood onto the concrete.

'You've… you've got the wrong guy,' the man croaked out. 'I don't owe anyone anything…'

'Bullshit, you motherfucker,' another one of the attackers snarled. 'Give us the money or your pretty daughter will become more than just something to look at. That mouth of hers will be good for something else, if you know what I mean.'

The man let out a sob and Emil's gut churned. He started to formulate a plan in his head—but he didn't get very far when something hit him painfully in the side _._ Grunting, he turned around to come face-to-face with another one of the assailants. They shoved him backwards so hard that Emil skidded on the ground as he fell. He ignored the aches that throbbed up his arms and back as he hurriedly stood up, made sure his hood was still in place and glanced at his surroundings.

'Who's this fucker?' a voice came from the circle, and a series of laughs followed. 'You a spy for this little shit, buddy?'

Emil laughed and shook his head. 'I've never met the guy,' he said confidently, despite being terrified on the inside.

'Yeah? So why were you hiding, huh?' the man who had pushed him piped up. 'You a spy for someone else?'

Emil didn't reply—at least, not verbally. He waited a moment or two before he whizzed around the circle, successful in knocking all of the gang members off their feet. He let out a cheerful sound and a smile edged its way onto his laughing mouth. The men lay on the concrete, dazed and confused.

'Shit, he's a super!' one of the men yelled, groaning as he got to his feet. 'Fucking get him!'

Emil's smile fell at his words, and he didn't have the time to react when a few hands grabbed his arms and held him with iron grips. When they reached for his face, Emil started to panic and he thrashed around in their grasps, determined to keep his identity hidden. He managed to kick two of them in the balls—not that he cared, they deserved it—and when he dodged another hand grabbing at his face, Emil quickly backtracked and bit the incriminating limb. At his vicious attack, he felt the grips on his arms loosen, and he took that loophole to rip one of his arms and throw a shattering punch towards the man on his left. It landed on his cheek and he fell back with a scream.

Turning to the man on his right, Emil didn't hesitate to punch him as well, and he winced as he felt the skin on his knuckles break. Emil didn't hold back anymore and he rushed around, kicking and slamming the men against the walls of the houses, tripping them over and sucker-punching them repeatedly. It was a full five minutes—and several retaliated hits to Emil's face and chest later—before the fight ended.

The gang members lay on the ground once more, all of them out cold.

Coughing deeply and breathing heavily to catch his breath, Emil turned to the victim, who had shuffled away from the fight. He looked at Emil with a mixture of awe and fear, but his expression relaxed when Emil said to him, 'Call the police and get out of here. Get your daughter and run. Save yourselves.'

The man sat up a little straighter and asked, 'Who are you?'

Emil paused, then replied with, 'Nobody. Just passing through.'

Neither said another word as Emil bolted from the scene. He returned to the main road where he had dropped Souta home, raced down the path past the corner shop and the street on the edge of the university, and up to the front door of the dormitory building in the space of a minute and a half. Then he entered the building and started hobbling up the stairs. Walking over to his dormitory, he grabbed his abandoned bag of books and scowled at the groans that were _still_ coming from the inside.

Checking his watch, Emil groaned when he saw the hands reading one o'clock. There was no way he was going to get into his dormitory that night, no chance of him laying his head on his own pillow in his own bed. At this point, he didn't care about his situation. He was going to go up to his step-brother's dormitory and ask if he could spend the night there. So he conquered the few flights of stairs leading up to the fourth floor, his brain clearly not functioning as he could have taken the lift instead.

When he made it, he trudged over to the door of Lukas' and Matthias' dormitory. Emil sighed heavily and winced at the pain that thrummed up his side. Everything hurt and he could feel his eyes drooping… he was just so tired. Raising his hand, he knocked twice on his step-brother's dormitory door, before pulling it away and nursing his bruised and bleeding knuckles.

To his surprise, it was Matthias who opened the door. His jaw dropped when he saw Emil, who, like Souta had done, focused his gaze on the ground. His cheeks were pink and he felt very foolish standing there, hopeless and desperate for help. Matthias wordlessly took him by the arm—very gently, to Emil's profound astonishment—and steered him into the living room. He delicately took his bag of books and placed it near the door.

'Let's get you cleaned up,' was all he said before disappearing into the bathroom, only to return with the first-aid kit. Emil felt extremely embarrassed, even more so when Lukas walked out of the kitchen and when the first stings of antiseptic landed on his knuckles.

'Rough night?' Lukas asked, as he came to sit next to him on the couch. 'Your roommate being a shit again?'

Not wanting to admit it out loud, Emil nodded sullenly and pouted. 'Amongst other things.'

'Stay here,' Matthias told him, in a tone of firm finality. 'You can tell us the details tomorrow, if you like. But for now, let us clean you up and then you can get some sleep. How does that sound?'

Emil could only nod once more before hanging his head in shame. But Lukas was allowing none of that as he raised Emil's head by his chin, moved some hair from his forehead and pressed a soft kiss against it. Emil backed away immediately, skin flushed red from discomfiture, and he shoved Lukas away. He knew Lukas wouldn't take it personally, proven by the sly grin forming around his mouth. He knew Emil hated physical affection from him—even though technically he allowed it once in a while, but that was beside the point. That went for Matthias as well, who messed up his hair tenderly, causing Emil to whine in protest.

The rest of the night was spent tending to Emil's wounds and when he finally laid his head against the pillow of Lukas' bed—as he decided he would share with Matthias for tonight—he let sleep overtake him… but not before vowing to seek revenge against his roommate one of these days.

* * *

 ** _To be continued..._**


	21. Chapter 20

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Himaruya Hidekazu. The plot of this AU belongs to myself and theartisserie.**

* * *

 _"_ _Expect the best. Prepare for the worst. Capitalise on what comes."—Zig Ziglar_

 **o**

Breathing in deeply, Matthias sluggishly opened his eyes and rolled onto his side, frowning when he noticed the missing body on the other side of the bed, one that had been there all night. Reaching out his hand, he felt that the sheets were still warm under his palm and, grabbing the pillow where Lukas' head had been, Matthias buried his face into it, cuddling it close to his chest. He wasn't quite ready to get up yet… he would much rather stay in bed just a little longer. It would have been better if Lukas was there with him, but it seemed the pillow would have to suffice for the time being.

But those wishes were placed into the back of his mind when he heard the squeak of the door opening and the sound of soft footsteps entering the room. When he felt the edge of the bed sink and a gentle hand pass through his hair, Matthias' lips curved upwards and he looked up to see Lukas staring at him. There was a tender smile on his face, one that made Matthias' heart soar with joy. His hand came to rest on Matthias' cheek, his thumb stroking his cheekbone, and he leant forward to press their lips together in a kiss. Out of all of their kisses thus far, Matthias was surprised at how soft this one was—not that he was complaining, for any type of kiss from Lukas made his day.

'Good morning,' Lukas whispered in Norwegian when they pulled apart. Matthias grinned and said the same back to him in his mother tongue. He let a long breath slip through his nose and he stared sleepily at Lukas.

'You're up early.'

Lukas shrugged. 'Couldn't sleep. Can't get this… Eduard thing out of my head.'

Matthias moved a piece of hair from Lukas' forehead and said, 'You should have woken me up when you did.'

'You looked so peaceful,' Lukas told him, smiling gently. 'I didn't have the heart.'

'Aww, aren't you a sweetheart?' Matthias cooed, chuckling lightly at the blush that covered Lukas' cheeks.

'Shut up,' was his muttered reply as he buried his face in Matthias' shoulder.

Laughing, Matthias pressed a kiss to his forehead and shifted his arm in order to wrap it around him and bring him closer. It was a silent plea for Lukas to return to bed, so Matthias could cover his face with kisses, to entangle his legs with his, to breathe in the smell of his hair… but it seemed that Lukas leaning against him, one arm hugging his side and his face pressed against his shoulder, was the closest they were going to get to it. Lukas was warm against him, and Matthias was close to falling back asleep. The pillow definitely did not do the real thing justice.

They spent a moment or two in a comforting peace before Matthias spoke. 'How's Emil?'

Lukas sighed. 'Still sleeping. I don't have the heart to wake him up, either. He looked like he had a hell of a night…'

'Yeah…' Matthias let out a huff. 'Maybe we should let him sleep. We'll go and do our thing and then when we get back, we can tell Emil what happened. I think he deserves a sleep in…'

'I agree,' said Lukas, nodding. 'I really should go and say something to that roommate of his…'

'You and me both,' Matthias muttered, frowning deeply.

Lukas placed a finger on Matthias' forehead and pushed upwards. 'Don't do that,' he said, and when Matthias sent him a puzzled look, he continued with, 'Don't frown like that. It doesn't suit you.'

At that, Matthias could only smile at him, but inwardly his heart was jumping up and down in delight. Lukas was just too damn cute for him to handle.

'Come on,' Lukas told him, patting his arm as he pulled away from Matthias and stood up. 'We need to go and meet Eduard, remember?'

Nodding, Matthias grinned up at him. 'Not before you give me another kiss.'

Instead of a kiss, Matthias got the pillow thrown at his face, followed by a playful jab to his side. 'Get up, you lazy fuck,' was all he heard Lukas say before he heard his footsteps retreating from the room. Laughing quietly to himself, Matthias, with much difficulty, got himself out of bed and raised his arms in a long, catlike stretch. He winced when he felt small sparks of pain shooting up his back, and scowled. _Gotta change the bandages again soon… Ugh._

Chucking on a pair of decent jeans, Matthias wandered into the living room. _I wonder what this "development" is…_ was what went through his head as he entered the kitchen, careful to keep quiet as to not wake Emil along the way. _Hmm…_ He met Lukas in there, and he didn't hesitate to wrap his arms around Lukas' waist and press a kiss at the base of his neck. As much as he wanted to find out Eduard's news, Matthias wanted nothing more at that moment than to stay in bed, curled up in the blankets with Lukas.

But as Lukas held up a coffee mug for him to take, Matthias knew that this was going to be a very long day.

 **.**

Walking up the stairs towards Eduard's floor, Tino struggled to keep his bulging bag on his shoulder. It was overflowing with his sketch books and the onslaught of readings he had gotten from his lecture that day. While he was grateful for his parents letting him live at home, sometimes he wished he lived at the university so he wouldn't have to carry all his stuff all day long. His shoulder was sore and his hands hurt from holding onto his strap.

 _You're almost there… hang on. And shut up, you do more physical activity than this every day!_

Turning the corner once he had scaled the second set of stairs and bringing the strap further up his shoulder, Tino paused when he saw a familiar body moving towards him. He smiled when he saw that it was Berwald and he waved a hand in greeting.

'Hey, Ber!'

Berwald looked up from the handle of his door and nodded. 'Hi.'

Watching him lock his door, Tino asked, 'We're meeting Eduard now, right?'

Eduard had called a meeting for the five of them to attend. He had stressed that it was essential that they all came because it needed all of them to be there. What it could have possibly been about, Tino had no idea. But it must have been important for them to see Eduard in person rather than for him to keep up his charade of sending them all letters.

Berwald merely nodded before he set his attention on Tino's bag. 'You need help with that?'

Tino laughed and tried to ignore the warming of his cheeks. 'No! I'm fine, but thank you though, that's very kind.'

He nodded once more and settled his eyes on Tino's face. They simply stood looking at each other, and Tino noted a slight spattering of red pass over Berwald's nose. All he could think of while staring at the taller man was: _Oh my fucking god… why is he so cute?_

In all honesty, Tino been admiring the man from afar over the past couple of months. While they had never gotten past more than a "hello", a quick conversation or a brief study session with Lukas, Tino had been shamelessly checking Berwald out. When they had first met, he had brushed him off as someone who was intimidating and mean. But once they had started meeting more frequently in the halls of the design building and when they became close with Lukas, Emil and Matthias, Tino had realised that Berwald wasn't scary, but actually rather shy and had trouble showing his emotions.

If that didn't make him more attractive, Tino didn't know what would.

Hearing a clearing of a throat, Tino came back to reality and blinked at Berwald in confusion. When his lips quirked upwards in a slight, half smile, Tino felt his heart slam against his ribs and his mouth dry. _Why is he so hot?_

'Sorry… what did you say?'

'Are you free on Friday?' Berwald asked again, studying Tino carefully behind his glasses.

Tilting his head to the side in intrigue, Tino replied, 'Yeah… Why?'

'For a date,' said Berwald. 'You're cute.'

A stunned silence formed between them. Tino's eyes had widened in shock and Berwald's entire face had turned dark red once he had realised what he had said. He averted his gaze to the floor and scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. Tino could only gape at him, his cheeks bright pink. But while he remained frozen on the outside, he was screaming inwardly.

 _He's asking me out? Oh my god, he's asking me out! And he thinks I'm cute? Fuck, if he knew how cute_ he _is, he would never call me cute. Oh shit, he's waiting for an answer. Oh god, he's asked me out! No way, this is crazy! Say yes, you fool! Say something!_

Slapping his hands on his face, Tino mumbled out, 'Shut up, I'm not cute…'

 _Real smooth, Tino._

Meeting his eyes again, Berwald's expression softened and he said, ' _Ja_ , you are.' He swallowed. 'I wanna get to know you… From the few times we've talked, you seem like a cool person. Plus we've worked together well. Both with studying and… the other thing.'

Tino couldn't believe his ears. How long had he been waiting to hear those words? Unable to fight the urge, a large smile split his cheeks, one where his teeth showed and his eyes shone. He swore he saw a flicker of something cross Berwald's expression when he did but it was gone almost as soon as it had come.

'Yeah, we do work well together, don't we?' He heaved in a deep breath. 'And I'd love to go out with you on Friday.'

Berwald drew a blank face, perhaps while his brain took in Tino's answer. Then his lips curved at the corners into an undeniable grin. Tino felt his heart shatter from the beautiful sight and he wished for nothing more than to see it again. From the time he had known him, not once had he seen Berwald smile.

The taller man came over to him and held out his hand. 'I'll carry that. You look exhausted.'

Puzzled, Tino didn't notice the weight lifting from his shoulder until his bag was rested on Berwald's shoulder instead of his. Opening his mouth to argue, he shut it and his face, if it was possible, went even pinker than it already was.

'Thank you,' was all he said and Berwald grunted in response.

They wordlessly made their way to the next staircase to go up to Eduard's floor. All the while, Tino's mind whirled. He couldn't get rid of the silly grin that was on his lips, nor could he stop stealing side glances of the tall man walking beside him. Tino had come up with several scenarios of Berwald asking him out on a date, but the reality had left him more breathless than his creations had.

Having reached the top of the staircase, a few feet away from Eduard's door, Tino turned to Berwald and said to him as bluntly as he could, 'Did I mention that you're cute, too?'

He let out a giggle when Berwald's skin bloomed into red once again.

 **.**

Eduard frowned as his eyes scanned the room. 'Where's Emil?'

It was a little past ten o'clock, and Berwald and Tino had just walked into the dormitory. Matthias and Lukas hadn't been there long when they had arrived, and Lukas exchanged a brief look with Matthias at the mention of Emil's evident absence.

'Emil… He had a bit of a rough night,' Matthias told him, smiling sympathetically. 'Lukas and I thought we'd let him sleep in today. We'll tell him everything that's said here though, don't worry.'

Tino sent them a worried look. 'Is he okay?'

'Yeah, just his roommate being a dickhead again,' Lukas aimed at him, scowling. 'Plus he looked like shit when he came to our dorm past one in the morning. So yeah, like Matthias said, we thought it best if he missed out and got some sleep instead.'

Tino nodded in understanding and made a face. Eduard sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

'No matter,' he said. 'Let the kid sleep. You can fill him in later.' He checked his watch. 'Okay, the other two should be here soon and then we can begin.'

Lukas frowned. 'Other two?'

The answer to his question came in the form of the Beilschmidt brothers, as they poked their heads in and Gilbert asked, 'We're not too late, are we?'

Eduard smiled. 'Nope, you're just on time!'

The pair came in, exchanging greetings via smiles and slapping hands in Matthias' and Ludwig's case. Lukas smiled inwardly at them, then frowned at himself for doing so, confused as to why. When they asked about Emil's absence, Matthias gave them a quick rundown and Gilbert vowed that he would see to the roommate personally and kick his balls. Lukas couldn't help the snort that passed his nose, and he thanked Gilbert for his concern over his step-brother. Gilbert shrugged and said that's what a normal person would do. They all took their seats after that, Lukas next to Matthias, naturally, and Eduard sat in front of them on the edge of his coffee table.

'Right,' he began, 'let's get into it.' He breathed in deeply and said, 'I have a job for you guys.'

'We figured,' Berwald mumbled. 'What is it?'

'Well…' Eduard hesitated before saying, 'It concerns the Adnans… and two captured people.'

'Eh?' Lukas glanced at Matthias and the both of them raised an eyebrow before Matthias continued with, 'What captured people? You mean Anne?'

Ludwig snapped his head towards his friend at the mention of Anne and added, 'I thought Anne had been captured by the Carriedos, not the Adnans?'

'Yes, that is true,' Eduard told him, 'but we also know that the Carriedos and the Adnans are in a partnership at the moment. But to answer your question, Matthias, no, it's not Anne… as far as I know. It could be, but I can't be certain. All we know is that it's two people who have been captured by the Adnans, and today's their third day as hostages.'

'So basically the agenda is to rescue these captives?' Gilbert asked, raising a pale eyebrow.

'Pretty much,' Eduard replied. 'But there's a catch.'

'Of course there is,' Lukas muttered, and he grinned slightly at Matthias' attempt to not smirk at his comment. But Eduard seemed to take no notice as he continued.

'You won't just be dealing with the mafia members,' he told them, and his eyes darkened as he said, 'You'll be dealing with the head himself.'

The temperature in the room dropped and Lukas found it hard to swallow. It was common knowledge, both in the human and superhuman worlds, that Sadik Adnan was a ruthless bastard who didn't care for anyone. They had all heard the stories about his mafia, but he was perhaps the most famous of them all. Lukas didn't like where this was going at all.

Gilbert was the one who spoke. 'You're joking, right? Is this—is this is some kind of test?'

Eduard looked at him deeply. 'No. That is why I've got _all_ of you together. You must work together—these people's lives are at stake. The only reason nothing bad has happened to them is because Sadik Adnan has been out of town and doesn't know about them yet.'

'So… you want us to save them _before_ he comes back?' Ludwig inquired.

'That's exactly what I'm saying,' Eduard said to him. 'But there is the chance he could come back early, or that he's already in town. We don't know.'

There was a moment of silence before Tino grumbled, 'Nothing's ever gonna be straight with you, is it?'

Eduard smiled. 'Where would the fun be if it were?'

Matthias cleared his throat and asked, 'So… details?'

'Tomorrow afternoon at around five o'clock.' Eduard coughed once. 'At the shipping docks again, but on the other side from where you were last time. I'll send you the address later.' He gazed at them all seriously, and Lukas was curious about the secretive glint he had in his eyes. 'Be prepared for anything.'

'What the hell is that supposed to mean?' Matthias cried out, but Eduard didn't answer, nor did he have anything more to add.

Everyone broke out into conversations at that point, although Ludwig and Gilbert had to rush to their classes, so they left with a hasty farewell. Berwald and Matthias were arguing over who had the most to do with their assessments, as the exam period was coming up in a few weeks. Lukas was chatting with Tino over the essays they had due the following Monday, and he smiled at the annoyed look Tino had on his face over the whole thing.

'We never get essays! What kind of design class makes us do an essay?'

Matthias, at that point, decided to make a smart remark about how Engineering students had it the worst, and design students didn't know what it was like for them. Lukas sent him an exasperated look for it, grinning slightly at the blank look on Berwald's face, before turning to Tino once again.

'I wanted to ask… are you free Friday, Tino? For our study session?'

Tino smiled and nodded. But then a confused look passed over his features, followed closely by a blush.

'Actually, no.' He grinned. 'Sorry, Lukas, but I have a date.'

That made Lukas raise an eyebrow in intrigue. 'Oh? Who is it? Is it someone I know?'

Much to his displeasure—and since when did he become so nosy?—Tino didn't say anything. He made a show of zipping his lips, clearly determined to remain secretive about the whole thing. But he gave himself away as his eyes landed on something beyond Lukas' line of sight and as his cheeks became pink once again. That made Lukas even more intrigued.

'Oh shit, I have a class in five. But I'll see you tomorrow, yeah?' he asked Lukas, who responded with a nod. He bade the others farewell as he quickly left Eduard's dormitory.

When he had shut the door behind him, Lukas turned around to see who Tino had been staring at. His eyes landed immediately on Matthias and Berwald, the pair continuing to argue over who had it worse. Realising straight away the soft, red tinge of Berwald's ears, Lukas knew.

He'd have to grill Tino about it later.

 **.**

Irina had not been expecting anyone to call at such a late hour when she had finished work for the day. Sitting in her office, the ringing of the large, black telephone placed upon her table surprised her, but she picked it up and answered it straight away.

'Hello, Irina Chernenko speaking.'

 _'_ _Ah! Irina, hello!'_ the voice on the other end said. _'How are you, my dear? You okay?'_

Irina smiled. 'I'm fine, thank you for asking. Yourself?'

 _'_ _Oh, I'm_ great. _But I'm afraid it's your brother I need to speak to—there's something he needs to know,'_ the voice replied, their enthusiastic tone melting into a business-like one.

'I'll get him for you,' Irina told them, then moved the phone away from her ear and pressed her palm against the speaker. 'Ivan! There's someone on the phone who wants to talk to you!' she yelled in Ukrainian.

Only a few seconds had passed when the door to her office opened and Ivan entered the room with a confused expression on his face. Irina wordlessly handed the phone to him and heard him mutter a word of thanks before saying, 'Hello?' into the speaker. Irina watched as Ivan's face transformed from quizzical to being deeply captivated. His lips curved into an undeniable grin and Irina saw his eyes light up in delight.

'That is great news!' he exclaimed. 'About time, too—I was getting bored.'

He then frowned, Irina presumed, as the voice spoke to him in his ear. He then looked at Irina and mouthed, 'Pen?' as he took her notepad and brought it towards himself. She complied, handing him the one that she had been using, and observed Ivan jotting down whatever the person on the other end was telling him.

'Sorry, could you repeat that last bit?' Ivan paused as his eyes roved over what he had already written, then resumed writing. 'Okay, and at what time?' He hummed as he wrote it down. Irina tried to look at the important thing that Ivan had scrawled down but he ripped the piece of paper from the notepad before she could do so.

Ivan laughed suddenly, causing Irina to raise an eyebrow in query, then said, 'Oh, don't worry. We'll be there. They won't know what hit them.'

He then said his goodbyes and the feeling of intrigue in Irina's chest only grew as Ivan put the phone back on the receiver. He looked at her with a broad, excited beam gracing his mouth and said to her in Russian, 'We're back in business, my dear sister. It begins! Maybe finally we'll get our old score settled.'

'Don't think too far ahead now, Ivan,' she rebutted. 'One step at a time.'

Ivan nodded begrudgingly, then glanced down at the note he had scribbled down.

'I'll go get Natalya,' Ivan told her, a wicked grin on his face. 'We have a lot of work to do.'

As he walked out of her office with a skip in his step, Irina couldn't help but share her step-brother's blatant eagerness as one of her own smiles crawled its way onto her lips.

 **.**

 _'…_ _Fear them._

 _'_ _You think you can take them on, but you won't be able to._

 _'_ _They're strong… stronger than you will ever be. No, no… don't blame me, I'm just telling you the truth. After all… that's what you have me here for, isn't it? I'm your guide, I'm here to make you see sense… me and my brother…_

 _'_ _That's why we're here… aren't we? Because the Vargas brothers know_ all. _'_

'... Get Lovino. Seems like he's the only one who can give me some _good_ news.'

* * *

 _ **To be continued...**_

* * *

 **A/N: Please review guys ; A ; I see that many of you have viewed the story, and yet so little of you have left reviews ; v ; I know I haven't replied to all of them, but I PROMISE I WILL. I just haven't gotten around to it yet. Please and thank you ; v ;**


	22. Chapter 21

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Himaruya Hidekazu. The plot of this AU belongs to myself and theartisserie.**

* * *

 _"This is the kind of discovery that resonates."—Saul Perlmutter_

 **o**

Elizabeta scowled heavily at the man's face that loomed in front of hers. She resisted with all her might to not just spit into his face and aim a choice kick upwards. However, much to her annoyance—but then again, she did get herself into this—both her legs were tied up, and her arms were of no use either as they were constricted to the arms of the chair.

'Such a pretty girl,' the man hummed, tracing a finger down her cheek. 'I wonder how your boyfriend here will react when the boss arrives to take a look at you.'

An irritated sigh came from next to her, and Elizabeta fought hard to hide a growing smirk. 'For the last time, I just met her! She's not my girlfriend.'

'So you've said the past thirty times,' the man muttered, rolling his eyes. 'But I don't believe you.'

'But it's true!'

'Come on, leave him alone!' another man yelled from the front of the warehouse. 'Come here and help with lookout, you pisshead!'

Grumbling under his breath, the man removed his face from Elizabeta's and started shouting at his friend, walking and gesturing wildly with his hands as he did so. Elizabeta blew out a breath and looked at her companion from the corner of her eye. He had a sour expression on his elegant face, and he glanced at Elizabeta with apparent frustration.

'Liz… Liz, I don't want to be here,' he muttered.

She sent him a pointed look. This wasn't the first time Roderich had whinged about their mission today. 'It's part of the job! Quit complaining!'

'Elizabeta, it's been _three_ days,' Roderich whispered to her harshly. 'You said nothing about staking it out for _three damn days._ '

'Well, I wasn't expecting Adnan to be out of the city for _three damn days_ ,' Elizabeta retorted.

There was a moment's pause before Roderich, on the verge of yelling, said squeakily, 'You said nothing about Adnan! You just said you were here for your friend—what does Adnan have to do with her? You said it was the Carriedos who kidnapped her!'

She sighed heavily before saying, 'Listen, Rod, I've already explained to you—Carriedo killed his man, the one that was responsible for kidnapping her. I heard from other sources that they moved her away from the Carriedos, and judging by the shit that Alfred is, he probably moved her into the Adnans' custody. So that's why we're here, I told you this!'

'You said _nothing_ of the sort!' Roderich argued, huffing. 'You just said we were coming here to pretend to be captured so we could draw the kidnappers out and save her!'

'That's exactly what we're doing!'

They proceeded to glare at each other, Roderich with a thinned mouth and Elizabeta with a raised eyebrow. Roderich looked away first and snorted out an angry breath.

'This is horrible… why did I agree to this?'

Elizabeta merely sighed in exasperation. Soon, the time would come to strike… and _then_ , hopefully, Roderich would stop whining.

 **.**

'Okay, who's got the address?'

Tino held up the piece of paper he had held in his hands. 'Got it here!'

He saw Matthias looking at him through the rear-view mirror, grinning hugely. 'Right, let's go then.'

Matthias had parked about five minutes away from where they were meant to be, just in case there were cameras nearby. After all, the last thing they wanted was to get caught. Tino watched as Matthias and Lukas hopped out of the car, and he waited patiently for Emil to get out before doing the same. As he shut the door behind him once he had gotten out of the car, Tino bit back a hiss at the chill that slapped his skin. Despite the fact that it was almost five o'clock in the afternoon, it was strangely dim and very cold for October. _Winter is on its way early this year, it seems_ , Tino thought as he rubbed his bare arms for warmth. _Should've brought a jacket._

Warmth suddenly encased his shoulders and Tino looked up to see Berwald looking off to the side, cheeks pink. 'Don't want you getting sick,' was his only explanation before walking after the others, as they had started moving towards the shipping dock. Tino thanked him bashfully and fell into step beside him, wrapping the jacket tighter around him.

'Right, I just got a text from Lu,' Matthias said loudly once Tino and Berwald had caught up to them. 'He and Gilbert are just around the corner, down that way,' he continued, pointing to the corner at the other end of the path.

They met Ludwig and Gilbert there once they had followed Matthias' directions. Both of them had serious expressions on their faces, and it was obvious in their gazes that they were determined to help out as much as they could. Tino could only hope that things weren't going to turn out like the last time they were together… He wanted a much smoother run now that they knew what they were doing.

At least… to some extent. But it was better than nothing, right?

'So… what's the plan from here?' Gilbert asked after clearing his throat. 'Do we split up into groups or are we doing something else?'

Matthias looked over at Tino. 'Ask our strategist.'

Rolling his eyes lightly, Tino turned to Gilbert. 'Basically the plan is this: we're gonna split into two groups before we enter the warehouse. The first group's aim is to find the two hostages and get them out of the shipping shed. The second group's aim is to fend off any of the mafia members and Adnan if he shows his face.'

'And who's in which group?' Ludwig inquired.

'Okay so… I've thought long and hard about it, and I think it should be like this.' Tino pointed to the brothers. 'I'm splitting you two up. Ludwig, you're in the second group with Matthias, Berwald and myself. Gilbert, I'm putting you with Emil and Lukas in the first group. You guys have defence and speed at your beck and call, in case the mafia members turn on you while you escape. Then once you've got the hostages out of harm's way, you can come and help us.'

'Sounds good to me,' Gilbert muttered, smiling hugely. 'Let's go and kick some butt, shall we?'

The response to his question came in the forms of quirked grins and nodding heads. Tino looked down at the address in his hand and surveyed his surroundings. 'Right, the shed is down that way,' he said, gesturing to his left. 'According to Eduard's note, we need to turn the next corner once we go down this street and there should be some shipping containers. Then we walk a little further and the shipping shed should be there.'

Not another word was said as they all started walking down the new road. Tino unconsciously found Berwald and stayed beside him as they travelled the path. Since his mind was so focused on his surroundings, he almost missed the brush of Berwald's hand against his and the whisper of, 'Be careful during all this. I don't want you to get hurt.'

Tino felt his face go pink and he sent Berwald a coy smile. 'As long as you do the same.'

Berwald nodded and quickly grabbed Tino's hand, squeezed it, then let it go. Tino heard his heartbeat picking up in embarrassment, and he felt his own pounding against his ribs. He realised then that Berwald was just _too_ adorable and caring, and he bloody loved it.

But it was when they turned the next corner, heading into a sea of shipping containers, that Tino felt his warm, blushed blood run cold. Pausing, he titled his head and shut his eyes. A multitude of sounds rushed into his ears and he winced from the loudness of it all. But there was one particular sound that had caught his attention… a dangerous sound… the sound of a racing heartbeat, one that signalled someone was nearby… someone who _wasn't_ a part of their cohort.

The others stopped walking, noticing that one of their group had stopped, and turned around to face him. Each one of them had a puzzled expression on their face.

'Dude, everything okay?' Matthias asked, frowning.

Tino held up a hand, successful in shutting Matthias up, and strained his hearing even further. Honing in on the foreign heartbeat—as he knew the sounds of the others' by heart—he frowned deeper when he heard the quiet, calm breathing of this stranger. There was something in the way they breathed that made the hairs on the back of his neck stiffen in fear. He heard the unsheathing of what would only have been a knife and his eyes went round in alarm.

'Shit!'

He dove to the side, narrowly dodging the whizzing weapon as it flew out of the shadows. Tino heard the others scattering at the sight of it, but unfortunately, the knife nicked Emil on the top of his cheek—which was a surprise in itself because Emil was the fastest one to move out of the way—causing him to hiss and a few beads of red to bubble at the wound. At the attack and the sight of the injury on his step-brother, Lukas' eyes began to glow and Tino could hear his bones moving as he made his way towards the place the weapon had come from. But he was prevented from doing anything by Matthias' urgent mutter of, 'Don't!' and Lukas fully stopped only when Matthias' hand grabbed onto his arm and pulled him back.

A tinkling laugh pierced the atmosphere then, one that sent unpleasant waves through Tino's body. He and others went back to their original spots and stared at the place where the sudden attack had come from. Tino squinted and he was alarmed to see an outline of a body hiding behind the edge of one of the shipping containers.

'Where is he then?' a voice asked, no doubt belonging to that body. It was feminine, laced with some kind of an accent, and dark as the night sky. 'Where is your expert marksman? Your hand-to-hand combatant?'

'What do you want with him?' Berwald mumbled, and Tino smiled inwardly at the protective tone his voice had undertaken.

The laugh returned, and Tino tried his hardest to repress a shudder at the sound. It hurt his ears, and it made him feel uncomfortable.

'Oh, nothing much,' they said and Tino could almost _hear_ the smile forming on their face. 'I want to challenge him to a duel.'

Tino's eyebrows shot into his hairline, even more so when Gilbert asked them, 'Who are you? You're no super.'

 _Not a super?_ Tino felt the colour drain out of his face. _Oh shit._

A series of claps came from where the voice had been coming from and all of them took a step back as the person came out of the shadows. 'Congratulations. You guessed correctly! I am indeed no super… but who's keeping record of a silly thing like that?'

Taking in the woman who stood in front of them, Tino's original thought of an authority figure pretending to be an opponent vanished. She looked far too young to be any kind of officer, although her expression was definitely serious enough to belong to one. Despite her playful attitude and her sarcastic remark, her features showed no signs of a smile—her face was void of any kind of emotion, save for the intrigue embedded in her eyes and the slight upturn of her eyebrow in what Tino could only label as complacency. She was dressed in all black: a pair of leggings and a hooded jumper. Her pale hair was tied up into a loose bun on the top of her head, and the rest of her hair that had fallen out of it was being kept up by a dark purple headband.

She appeared as if she was going to the gym, but judging by her stance, that was the last thing on her mind.

Gilbert growled and asked once again, 'I'm not asking you again after this. Who are you? What do you want?'

It was then that she grinned and raised her hands in mock surrender. 'I do apologise.' She made a brief bow and said, 'Natalya Arlovskaya, and as I said before, I am here to challenge your expert hand-to-hand combatant in a duel.' She stood straight again and her eyes glinted. 'So… which one of you is him?'

Deciding not to draw out the moment any longer, Tino stepped forward and ignored the protests from the others as he did so. 'That would be me.'

Natalya set her gaze on him, and Tino was alarmed when she started laughing. 'You're a lot smaller than I imagined—the stories I've heard do not match with what I'm looking at!'

Tino scowled. 'I don't know whether or not I should be offended.' He paused. 'What stories?'

But Natalya chose to ignore his question as she straightened her back and curled her hands into fists by her sides. 'That doesn't matter. What does matter is that we know what we're getting ourselves into, and what better way to check that than to duel?'

Tino heard Matthias' breath hitch and his shocked whisper of, '"We"? There's more?'

She took a step forward then and removed her jumper, chucking it on the ground. There was a black singlet underneath, similar to the one Tino was wearing, but he wasn't interested in that—no, he was more interested in her steeled stare and rigid posture. Tino followed her example and shrugged Berwald's jacket from his shoulders, holding it out to him with a small smile. Berwald hesitated, but gently took it and urged with his eyes for Tino to remember what he had said.

Tino turned to back to Natalya. _Well. There goes my original plan._ He scowled. _Again._

'I accept.'

Natalya, for the first time that evening, broke out into a smile. Tino chose to ignore the splutters that came from behind him.

'Listen, you guys go ahead,' Tino then said to the others, staring at her intently. 'I'll deal with this.'

'Nuh uh, we are _not_ leaving you alone,' Matthias told him. 'I'll stay behind.'

'Same,' Emil piped up, and he frowned when Lukas made an indignant noise. 'Don't, Lukas, I want to help!'

Lukas said nothing, but Tino could see in his expression that the last thing he wanted Emil to do was remain behind. He watched as he went towards Matthias and whispered something in his ear. Matthias' face took on a determined expression and he nodded before smiling softly at his friend.

'Come on,' Lukas said to the others, which consisted of Berwald and the Beilschmidt brothers. 'We'll meet them in there… provided there isn't _something_ that interrupts us.' He glared at Natalya, whose only response was a secretive smile.

Ludwig looked uncomfortable. 'A-Are you sure?' he aimed at Tino. 'We can always stay—'

'We came here to do a job,' Tino interrupted. He pointed to Natalya. 'She's just an obstacle, though one that not all of us have to deal with. So go, ignore our previous plan and improvise—and like Lukas said, we'll meet you there.' Looking at his watch, he said, 'We're running out of time, go! It's past five!'

The others didn't need telling twice after that, so, with one final look back at Matthias, Emil, Tino and Natalya, they left the scene and made their way towards the shipping shed in the near distance. The oncoming darkness consumed them rather quickly, and Tino glanced at the horizon to see the sun sinking under it. Within the next few minutes, they would be shrouded in the night, and that, for some reason, made Tino afraid—not so much for himself, but for Mathias and Emil. They didn't have what he had—they couldn't sense newcomers by a heartbeat nor could they see in the dark as well as he did.

'You two, stay out of this,' Tino told them sternly as he got out his black fabric from his pocket and put it over his head and eyes.

If they wanted to reply, they didn't get the chance as Natalya made the first move, aiming straight for Tino's jaw, just as those last rays of the sunset vanished under the horizon. They were now cascaded in darkness, which made it difficult for Matthias and Emil, but easier for Tino. He could hear and see things better in the dark, after all.

He dodged Natalya's punch to his face and, instead, managed to wrap an arm around her waist and flip her backwards. He heard her fall on the concrete with a loud thud, but he was alarmed to hear her jump back onto her feet almost immediately. Tino was astounded as to how calm her heartbeat was, and that made him even more determined not to lose to her. Her footfalls came closer to him, and he was quick enough to move out of another one of her hits. His arms went around her legs as he ducked, resolute on tripping her over once more.

But Natalya appeared to be a lot more agile than Tino originally thought. He didn't know how he came to be there, but as soon as he had grabbed her legs, he had somehow ended up flat on his back with her on his stomach and her fingers gripping his wrists above his head. Her face was up close to his, and Tino could see the smile that had crawled its way onto her lips. If he didn't have feelings for Berwald, Tino might have just considered Natalya as a woman to indulge all his senses in. But since he did have feelings for Berwald, Natalya's beauty was just something Tino considered nice to look at. So he didn't hesitate in the harsh buck in his hips to distract her, or the ripping of his hands from her grasp in order to roll them sideways so that he was on top of her.

Now that he was there, the last thing Tino wanted to do was to fully let loose. Something told him this wasn't a duel to the death, after all... But when Natalya craned her neck upwards and bit him on his shoulder, he let out a yell and moved away from her. His decision resulted in a choice kick to his jaw as Natalya got to her feet.

Tino coughed and groaned softly. He glared at Natalya through the fabric. _You wanna fight dirty?_ He spat blood onto the concrete. _Then let's fight dirty._

'Um… Tino, man, you okay?' Matthias called out.

'I'm fine,' he replied quickly, feeling irritated by the smug look on Natalya's face. 'Just stay out of this, please. This is between me and her.'

Natalya laughed loudly at his words. 'Oh, don't worry… they'll be busy soon enough.'

The three of them looked sharply at her, and Tino's heart plummeted when a new sound—one that alarmed him over the fact that he hadn't heard it sooner—came onto the scene. Another two new sounds… two sets of heartbeats, just as calm and collected as Natalya's.

He snapped his head towards Matthias and Emil and yelled, 'Move away from there!' just as he heard movement coming from right behind them.

Matthias didn't need telling twice as he surged forwards and spun around, his knees bent and his hands in fists, smouldering. Emil followed his lead and Tino could hear the tension of his shoulders and jaw as they tightened.

Natalya's laugh was joined by a cheerful chuckle, and Tino's skin crawled with goose bumps at it. From the shadows, behind where Matthias and Emil had been, emerged a tall figure… a _very_ tall figure, one as tall as Berwald, if not taller—but he was certainly broader. He was wearing a dark coat and a long, tan scarf around his neck, and his pale hair glinted in the moonlight—Tino wasn't sure if it was blond or like Emil's very fair shade. He was joined by another body, a slightly shorter one, perhaps half a head, maybe less, Tino couldn't really tell. He noticed immediately that she was much curvier than Natalya's lean shape, but she shared similar features to her… as well as the man next to her. Same fair hair, same glinted look, same defensive stance, same foreboding aura, same goddamn calm heartbeat…

 _Are they… siblings?_ Tino wondered, looking back and forth between the three.

The tall man decided to speak, and his deep, accented tone—almost the same as Natalya's—made Tino's world freeze, especially when he saw his eyes glimmer with something that could only be described as fanaticism.

'Good evening.' He smiled broadly. 'Who's ready to play a little game?'

 **.**

Gilbert's sneeze was what gave them away.

After having left Tino, Matthias and Emil behind with Natalya, the others had made their way to the entrance of the shipping shed, Berwald and Ludwig on one side, and Lukas and Gilbert on the other. They would have entered the shed straightaway if it weren't for the two mafia men guarding the entrance. Lukas had been in the middle of having a silent conversation with Ludwig and Berwald when Gilbert let out a muttered, 'Oh fuck,' before sneezing loudly. The sound, naturally, caused the guards to yell out into the darkness.

'Who's there?' one of them shouted and Lukas heard the clicking of a gun. 'Show yourselves!'

'Well done, genius,' Lukas mumbled to Gilbert. His response was merely an indignant, sarcastic apology.

The guards yelled out once again and Lukas exchanged an exasperated look with Berwald and Ludwig. _Now what?_ He sighed. _So much for being stealthy._ But it seemed that Gilbert was determined to get them into more trouble as he shouted back, 'A proper super doesn't follow the orders of scum like you, you arseholes!'

Lukas punched him in the arm and sent him a glare. 'Are you for real? Are you trying to get us killed?'

Gilbert simply stuck out his tongue and he opened his mouth to say something. He never got the chance for there was a new sound on the scene.

'Oh! Do you hear that?' a voice came from within the shed. 'There are supers here to help us!'

'You fool!' another voice, feminine in nature, snapped. ' _You're_ a super! Act like one!'

Lukas heard the guards exclaim, 'What?' before his ears suddenly started to ring. He couldn't pick out what the noise was, but he clapped his palms over his ears to muffle the loudness a bit. It didn't do much to help and he saw that the others were in the same position as he was. The sounds grew louder, if that was even possible, and it took Lukas a moment to realise that the source of the sound was a pair of arguing voices before a sweet melody filled the air.

 _Is that… someone_ singing? Lukas pulled a face. _What the actual fuck?_

But the singing was doing a good job of distracting the guards, for they were on their knees, their guns in front of them and their palms on their faces. Looking at them from his corner, Lukas came up with an idea. He knew that if Matthias were there, he would receive a lecture of how putting himself in the line of fire was dangerous and how stupid he was for even thinking of doing such a thing in the first place. But Matthias wasn't there, so Lukas shakily got to his feet and ran to stand in the middle of the entrance.

His eyes glowed and he removed his hands from his ears. He could see in the near distance two people—the hostages by the looks of it—tied to their chairs. The man was, Lukas was astounded to discover, the source of the singing, and Lukas saw that the woman's eyes were screwed shut and that her head was tilted to the right. He wondered if she had something to do with how _loud_ everything was.

Lukas heard Berwald, Ludwig and Gilbert hissing at him to come back, but he chose to ignore them. Instead, he lifted his hands, his fingers glowing blue—he curled them into fists and brought them to his chest. Then, with as much energy as he could muster, Lukas threw his hands out again, and the entire entryway was enveloped in blue. The force of his action caused him to stagger backwards a few steps, but the move had been enough to make the singing and the noisiness stop with an impressive wave of wind caused by the force-field. The entrance shimmered briefly, then the light vanished altogether.

 _Finally…_ Lukas thought. _My force-field worked… for once._ He looked back at the others. 'Well, don't just sit there,' he said to them, just as several men came flooding into the shed from the back. 'We have a battle to win.'

 **.**

After the tall man's question, Emil was the one who voiced their thoughts. 'Who the hell are you? And what are you talking about?'

The man giggled and grinned broadly. 'That's for us to know and for you to never find out. Now enough talking,' he added as he bent his knees. 'Let's fight.'

None of them had any time to protest as the three attackers started throwing hits at them. Matthias had gone into a defensive stance against the other woman, Tino had resumed his fight with Natalya and Emil had only slightly dodged the tall man's punch as he whizzed to the side. As Tino aimed an elbow towards Natalya's stomach, she flipped backwards off the edge of a shipping container and kicked Tino square in his chest. Then she disappeared as she jumped on top of the container and stared smugly down at him.

'Come and get me, you tiny man!' she yelled at him, and the comment made Tino see red.

But before he joined her on top of the container, he caught the panicked conversation between Matthias and Emil. His eyes widened when he saw the woman's burns—no doubt caused by Matthias—vanishing when she touched her fingers to them. _Oh, no… don't tell she's some freaky healing super!_ Tino thought in horror. When she quickly grabbed the man's face and the scratches that had been on his face dissolved into nothing, Tino's jaw dropped.

'Fuck.'

'Emil, for god's sake, she's too fast for me!' Matthias cried, keeping his arms up to his face as she hit his forearms. 'And I can't hit her—she's a woman!'

'Are you for real, Matt?' Emil shrieked, successful in knocking the man off his feet. 'She's gonna smash your face in if you don't fight back! Stop being a gentleman and _fight her_ , fuck you!'

'I'll hit her where I don't wanna hit her, you bastard!' Matthias yelled back, ducking before she could have hit him in the face. 'The last thing I want is to be tried for sexual assault, dammit!'

'Oh my god, Matthias—they're _just_ boobs!'

Nothing more was said because at that moment, the woman managed to punch Matthias right on his nose, and he fell back onto the concrete. He groaned loudly and swore as he sat up, his hands to his nose, and Tino could see the blood dripping through his fingers.

'Get out of the way!' Emil yelled, and he knocked the woman into a nearby shipping container. 'Deal with him, I'll sort her out!'

Matthias rose from the ground, wiping blood from his nose, and his hands glowed with fire. He and the man became locked in an intense fist-fight.

'They're good, aren't they?' Natalya taunted him from above. 'They learnt from the best, after all—it's good not having powers. You learn how to fight the hard way, but it's definitely worth in the end.' Her eyes glazed over and her mouth twisted into a sneer. 'Now come and fight me, you little shit.'

'Oh, that does it,' Tino snarled and he quickly got to the top of the container. 'I'm gonna kick your arse, you shit!'

'Now, that's more like it!' Natalya exclaimed, smiling gleefully. 'I like a bit of attitude!'

'Yeah, well you're about it get it,' Tino snapped and hit her in the stomach.

Neither of them held back at that point. They rolled around on the top of the container, hitting each other wherever they could. Blood rushed in Tino's ears, and he could hear the scuffles that were Emil and Matthias with the newcomers. Tino's hands and feet hurt, but he was determined to show this woman that he was not a short idiot who didn't know what he was doing—no, he knew _exactly_ what he was doing. He had had training in all kinds of martial arts ever since he was a kid. This is was easy compared to what he had dealt with in the past.

At some point Natalya had grabbed him in a headlock and they had tumbled over the edge of the container onto the ground below. But that had only given Tino leverage to get Natalya onto her back and have his forearm under her chin. She bit him again and then they were on their feet, trying to trip the other up with kicks and punches aimed at chests, arms and legs.

Yet it was when they were on the ground that something new happened. Matthias suddenly let out a tremendous roar and grabbed his hair. Everyone stopped what they were doing and watched as he staggered backwards and lifted his head. Tino gasped audibly at the rage that blazed in his eyes—literally, as his hair and the skin around his face was being licked by flames. It wasn't as bad as that night at the warehouse with the Rogue Assassin, but it was very nearly.

But then it just stopped. Matthias visibly relaxed and the fire all over his body was extinguished. His clothes were singed, but Tino was worried about the frightened look that was all over his face more than the state of his clothes.

Matthias let out a strange sound. _'You!_ It was you, wasn't it?' he said weakly, pointing to the tall man.

The man blinked and frowned in puzzlement. 'What was?'

'It was you…' Matthias growled. 'At the warehouse… You did that to me, didn't you? You made me want to kill that guy! You… fucked with my head!'

As his breath hitched in understanding, Tino watched as a brief flicker of recognition passed over the tall man's eyes before they steeled themselves. _Perhaps Matthias is onto something…_ he thought. _Was he just taken over? That must have been it… there's no way Matthias would lose control like that… He was right, oh god._

'I have no idea what you're talking about. The first time I saw you was today,' the man told him with a glare. 'Now, where were we?'

The fighting resumed, dirtier and quicker than before. All Tino could think about as he grabbed Natalya's kicking leg and pulled it towards him, causing her to stumble, was _is this fight ever going to end?_

 **.**

Elizabeta blinked rapidly at the wave of wind that slapped her in the face. Her eyes landed on the newcomer, and her breath hitched at the sight of him. Even from where she was, she could see how bright his eyes were and, when she looked down at her restraints, her eyebrows shot into her hairline. It appeared that the strength of the force-field had loosened the ropes around her and Roderich to the extent that it was easy to slip out of them.

And good thing too, for the rest of Adnan's mafia was pouring into the shipping shed. She quickly removed herself from the ropes and worked at Roderich's right wrist as he undid the rest on himself.

'Do you trust me?' she asked him, just as three more bodies came from the entrance—two metal men and a… teenager with a baseball cap? She watched as the men of metal started fighting the guards near the entrance and as Baseball Cap Guy and the bright-eyed man moved further into the shed and started battling the onslaught of mafia men coming from the back.

Roderich made a face. 'Yes and no, but let's go with yes just to save us arguing for the time being.'

Elizabeta rolled her eyes and leant in to whisper her plan in his ear. When she had finished, she saw Roderich's jaw tighten and his eyes flashed in understanding. Then everything went silent… or at least, not on Elizabeta's end.

'What the fuck? I can't hear anything!' one of the mafia men yelled. 'Can you hear me?'

'What are you saying? I can't lip read, you little fuckhead!' another shouted. 'Speak properly!'

Elizabeta laughed evilly and her eyes locked onto the supers that had entered the shipping shed. They appeared to be very confused, and they looked at each other quizzically. It was then that she realised that she could only see three of them. _Where did the fourth one go?_

'Whoa… what's happening right now?'

Her head snapped towards the voice and Elizabeta's eyes widened when she saw the Baseball Cap Guy standing right next to her. She noticed that he had taken off the cap and the sunglasses that had been on his nose, and she watched those eyes of his scanning the floor in awe.

He turned to look at her. 'What is this? Sound manipulation? It seems like it… that's pretty neat, I have to say.'

'What the fuck?' Elizabeta muttered and she laughed shortly. 'You… you have the same power or something?' But then she remembered that he had had the same power as the glow-eyed man and when the piece clicked in her mind, she groaned. 'Oh fuck, you're a copycat, aren't you?'

He laughed. 'So… what's the plan, woman?' he asked her, a large grin forming on his mouth at her realisation. 'You just gonna have everyone here act like headless chickens?'

Elizabeta chuckled and whispered, 'Just wait.'

She heard the first notes of Roderich's song and she amped the volume in the atmosphere up to the extreme. Everyone fell to the floor, groaning in agony and Elizabeta couldn't help but laugh at the sight of all the mafia men writhing in pain. She felt bad for the other supers, so she tried to spare them the pain, and was surprised when she realised that it worked. They stood up from their spots on the floor and looked around in confusion as to what was happening. Then they saw Elizabeta and the other guy and started walking towards them.

It was the glow-eyed super who spoke first. 'What the hell are you doing? You're hurting my ears… please stop.'

'Yeah, excuse me, mate.' She scoffed lightly. 'My actions have rendered this entire mafia useless. All thanks to Rod's lovely voice!' Then she made the sound return to normal, just because she could. 'Now, gentlemen, are we ready to kick some arse?'

'Oh god, you're exactly like him…' one of the metal men muttered, and she saw him glaring at the copycat super.

No one had any more time to say anything for the mafia men had started towards them at that point, and the fighting resumed. Elizabeta smashed a few faces here and there, kicked a groin or two, and definitely felt the occasional bone break. God, she hadn't felt this alive in _years._

'You know… you're a piece of work,' the glow-eyed man muttered from next to her, and he swung his green-tinged arm towards a man's face. 'But at least you can fight.'

Elizabeta merely grinned and sucker-punched the nearest mafia member in the stomach. Then her eyes scanned the floor, searching for a particular face, and she scowled when she couldn't see them.

 _Adnan… where the fuck are you? Where have you hidden Laura?_ She growled low in her throat. _Alfred_ fucking _Jones… I'm going to kill you next time I see you._

 **.**

They were all panting heavily. Matthias was on all-fours, coughing, Emil was leaning against one of the shipping containers and Tino had Natalya in a headlock on the ground. The tall man and the crazy healing woman stood a little way away from Matthias and Emil, the woman's chest rising and falling rapidly and the tall man's cheeks pink from exertion.

All of them were covered in injuries, be it in the forms of burns, scratches or bruises. Tino knew he was going to have lots of fun getting out of bed the next morning. It was deadly silent between them, save for their heavy breathing. Natalya was the one who broke it.

'Huh… you're better than I thought you were.' She laughed breathlessly. 'I surrender. You win. Can you please let go of my neck?'

'What, giving up so easily?' Tino aimed down at her, swallowing a mouthful of blood. 'You were ready to kill me earlier.'

'Well… we got what we came for,' she answered, tugging at Tino's arms. 'Now we have enough information to make a decision.'

Matthias lifted his head and stood up slowly. 'What decision?'

'Whether or not you're worth it,' the other woman said, and her eyes grew warm, which startled Tino greatly. 'We've been told a fair bit about you lot, and we wanted to know whether or not you're worth our time and energy.'

'And,' Emil spoke up, 'are we?'

The woman merely smiled and said nothing, much to Tino's frustration. Since neither her nor the tall man seemed to have any intentions of doing any more fighting, Tino released Natalya from his hold and got to his feet.

'You're working for someone, right?' he asked them, frowning. 'What's your agenda?'

The tall man smiled gently and ran a hand through his hair. 'We can't tell you that. Not now. But I'll leave you with this one thought,' he then said to them, a small, secretive smile on his face. 'The man whom you seek goes by the name of Jones. He has close ties with Kirkland and is, to an extent, just as ambitious as he is. But be careful where you tread, my friends—we wouldn't want anyone to get hurt now, would we?'

Tino's eyes widened at his words and he saw Matthias sway backwards in alarm. But before either he or Matthias could say a word in reply—or to ask the obvious question of 'How do you know the guy?'—the man turned to the two women and said quietly, 'Our work here is done. Let's go.'

They vanished into the shadows, and instead of feeling relieved, Tino felt nervous.

 _What the hell have we gotten ourselves into?_

 **.**

Lukas looked around the warehouse floor, taking in the stains and splatters of red, the unconscious bodies that lay in awkward positions and the astonishing cracks that Ludwig had managed to make when he had landed harder than he had intended. As he looked, something caught his eye: a man with dark eyes and a bald head was cowering in the corner, behind a shipping container. Lukas wasted no time in walking over to him, with his troll trailing along obediently behind him. The man stared at Lukas in horror, his jaw slackened and eyes wide.

When he reached him, Lukas leaned forward so that their noses were almost touching, raised his hands to his face and muttered out a quiet, 'Boo.' The man whimpered loudly and crawled away from Lukas before running out of the warehouse, like a dog with its tail between its legs. Lukas felt his troll vanish and his shoulders slumped forwards. _Ugh… I feel sick…_ His vision swam before him, and he shook his head roughly to clear it. But that only made things worse, and Lukas threw out a hand to stable himself. His head pounded and he rubbed his forehead with his fingertips.

'Hey… you alright?'

Looking up, he came face-to-face with the woman who had managed to make his ears ring throughout the battle. Her eyes roved over his face in concern and he realised that she had placed a hand on his shoulder. At her question, he nodded weakly and breathed in deeply.

'Just went a little overboard…' he croaked out. 'I'll be fine in a couple of minutes.'

But Lukas suddenly found himself falling as his knees gave way. He felt the woman's arms hold him up and her yelp reached his ears at his sudden movement. She gently lowered him to the ground and Lukas' back met the shipping container behind him once she had done so. A low groan passed his lips and he hung his throbbing head, burying his face in his palms. He heard the Beilschmidt brothers and Berwald hurrying his way, and Gilbert's face came up to his own, his eyebrows furrowed upwards in worry.

'Hey, man, you okay?'

Lukas nodded. 'Yeah… just used too much of my energy. Just need a moment, I'll be okay.'

There was a pause before Berwald's deep tone asked him, 'What do you mean by that?'

Leaning his head against the shipping container, Lukas shut his eyes for a moment before saying, 'Well, my power is called _energy_ projection… and where else would I get the energy if not from myself? That's the whole basis of it, after all. I use the energy from my body to create light and solid objects. That's why I don't use my troll all that often, and not for a very long time either, just short bursts. But today I went a bit over the top.'

There was a moment's pause. 'You didn't tell us that,' Berwald said in a low voice, in a clearly disapproving tone.

'With good reason,' Lukas shot back. He glared at him lightly. 'Not a word to Matthias. I'll never hear the end of it.'

Despite the disapproving look on his face, Berwald nodded and sighed deeply. 'You need to take better care of yourself.'

'I'll try, but no promises,' Lukas said to him, smiling gently. He turned to the woman, who had put her hand back on his arm. 'Sorry to be rude… but who are you exactly?'

She grinned at him. 'I could ask you the same thing, but since you asked first… I'm Elizabeta, and this is my companion Roderich.' She gestured to the man who had fought alongside her, the man with the beautiful, hypnotising voice, who bowed his head in acknowledgement.

'I'm Lukas, and this is Gilbert, Ludwig and Berwald.' Lukas pointed to each of them in turn. Berwald and Ludwig responded with a slight smile, and Gilbert grinned broadly and made a dramatic bow.

'Pleasure,' said Roderich. His brow creased in thought. 'Forgive me for being so forward but… what exactly are you doing here?'

'That's easy,' Gilbert piped up. 'To rescue you from the bad guys!'

'You need to be more careful,' Ludwig told them quietly. 'They could have hurt you really badly. I mean, they're the mafia after all.'

'Well… it was a necessary thing to do.' They all turned their heads to see Elizabeta's expression turn sheepish. 'There was a life at stake… and it was all for nothing. Fucking Adnan didn't even show his face, the little bastard.' She sighed heavily. 'I'll never find Laura now.'

Lukas, Berwald and the Beilschmidt brothers all made curious sounds. 'Who's Laura?'

'Lukas!'

Lukas looked up in time to see the crowd around him parting and Matthias running into the building, with Tino and Emil close behind him. He could just make out the horrified look on Matthias' face in the distance before he was on his knees beside Lukas. His palms gently cradled his face as his eyes scanned him.

'Hey, you okay? What's happened? Are you hurt? Do you need anything?—'

'Matt, shh…' Lukas whispered, placing a hand on Matthias' mouth to stop his onslaught of questions. 'I'm fine. I just went a little over the top, that's all... I'll be okay in a moment. Just need to take a breather.' He took in the scratches on Matthias' face and frowned deeply. 'What about you? You look like shit.'

Matthias laughed. 'Don't worry about me, I'm fine. It's you we need to worry about.' His expression darkened, which intrigued Lukas. 'But we found the person responsible for fucking with me that night in the warehouse… you know… with the Rogue Assassin.'

'Eh? You did?' Gilbert asked in shock. 'So you weren't completely over your head, then?'

'Of course not!' Matthias said defensively. 'That guy made me do it—I couldn't fight against him.'

'We can't be sure it was him, Matthias,' Emil told him matter-of-factly. 'He didn't exactly say it was him, did he?'

'Well, I don't know, Emil, he seemed pretty shifty,' Tino rebutted. 'I don't know if you saw the look on his face, but he seemed to know what Matthias was talking about. And he didn't exactly deny it, did he?'

'Look, listen, sorry to interrupt,' Elizabeta, who had been sitting beside Lukas the whole time, interjected. 'But this guy you're talking about… who is he?'

Matthias looked up in surprise, and Lukas grinned inwardly at the thought that Matthias had been so worried about him that he hadn't noticed the two strangers upon entry. But he became alarmed when Matthias' expression turned wary and angry as he stood up slowly.

'Who the hell are you?' His face went pale. 'Oh shit… you're not supers, are you?'

Elizabeta blinked and she exchanged a brief look with Roderich before nodding. Lukas heard Tino hiss out a soft, 'Oh fuck,' and Matthias' angry expression returned.

'You're… you're with those freaks outside, aren't you?' he growled at Elizabeta and Roderich. 'This is a trap… you're luring us in!'

'Matthias… what are you talking about?' Ludwig asked him, his forehead creased with a frown. 'They're on our side! They fought with us!'

'Listen, those supers outside… they know Jones,' Matthias said to him, and a thick silence enveloped the group. 'How do we know that these two aren't a part of their plot? Or worse… a part of Jones' group?'

Elizabeta laughed harshly and glared heavily at Matthias. 'You think we're a part of Alfred's shit gang? What a joke.'

'To be fair, we don't know what to think,' Emil said softly. 'Those three outside… they're a right piece of work, and like Matthias said, the guy is definitely capable of manipulation. Eduard did mention that Alfred's group has members who have that ability.'

'Eduard? As in Eduard von Bock?' Elizabeta interrupted.

'You know him?' Lukas aimed at her.

'To some extent,' she replied. 'We've met on the off occasion… we worked together on a few things.' She looked at Matthias. 'So to make things clear, Roderich and I are _not_ a part of Alfred's little… I don't even know what to call it. I'd rather be dead than to ever be under his leadership. But never mind that… who exactly is this guy you're talking about?'

'I don't know—some Russian guy, judging by the accent,' Matthias muttered. 'But never mind him, it's _you_ we have to worry about,' he aimed at Lukas as he tucked his fringe behind his ear.

But Elizabeta's brow furrowed and she sent Matthias a strange look. 'Wait, let me get this straight… you saw a Russian guy and you believe he fucked you over? How can you be so sure?'

Matthias looked uncomfortable. 'I just know, okay?'

Lukas watched then as Elizabeta's face turned thoughtful. 'You didn't happen to catch his name did you?'

Emil, Matthias and Tino shook their heads. 'No, but he was with two other people—women,' Tino elaborated. 'We managed to get one of their names, though. Natalya.'

Everyone watched as Elizabeta's concentrated look vanished and as her jaw went slack. 'No way… I thought they went off the radar! But there's no doubt about it.' She let out a huff. 'That was definitely Ivan and Irina if Natalya was with them. What are they doing here, I wonder?'

Berwald made an inquisitive sound. 'You know them too?'

Elizabeta sighed. 'Yeah… our paths have crossed a few times, sometimes good, but most not so good.' She glanced at everyone. 'It's a long story.'

Berwald glanced at his watch. 'We have time,' he said. 'We can talk in my dormitory since there's no one there to disturb us.'

'How about it, Elizabeta?' Tino said to her. 'Would you be willing? I mean… the more we know about what's happening, the better, right?'

She nodded, then smiled fondly at the men around her. 'I suppose so. And I guess you are owed an explanation, after all… I doubt Eduard told you much, am I right?'

Lukas grumbled under his breath, 'You got that right,' which caused Elizabeta to laugh.

'In that case, I'll tell you what I know.' She looked at Berwald. 'Lead the way, Berwald.'

Once Lukas had gotten to his feet—with Matthias' help, of course—they all started to make their way out of the shipping shed towards the street where Matthias had parked his four-wheel drive. Lukas had ambled to the back of the group, far too tired to walk fast like everyone else. But he wasn't the only one there.

'Hey… Lukas?'

Turning at the voice, Lukas' face morphed into a look of mild interest as his eyes settled on Ludwig. Ludwig's eyes darted from person to person as he leaned in towards Lukas and whispered, 'You and Matt… am I wrong in assuming that you're… you know…'

'Together?' he finished for him, and he received a nod in reply. Lukas smiled secretively and winked at Ludwig before setting his gaze on Matthias' back.

* * *

 ** _To be continued..._**

* * *

 **A/N: Thank you to everyone who has reviewed so far! Keep them up eheh and I feel so touched by all your comments rhguerhg**

 **Just letting you all know that uni is starting again for me next week and judging by these course outlines, it's gonna be a monster of a semester. So expect little to no updates :( Sorry guys ; A ; but hopefully this chapter will keep you entertained for the time being :D**

 **I love you all, and thank you all again ^ ^**


	23. Chapter 22

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Hidekazu Himaruya. The plot of this AU belongs to myself and theartisserie.**

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 _"_ _Be careful how you live. Someone is always watching and will look to you as an example, an excuse, or a warning. The message some choices send is why struggle to do the right thing when you can do the wrong thing and be happy. Should we be happy or should we be right?"—_ Donna Lynn Hope

 **o**

It took them all longer to figure out how to get home than to actually get home. Since Matthias' four-wheel drive could only seat five and Gilbert and Ludwig had come by bus, there was the issue as to how they were all going to fit—particularly since everyone was too tired to either walk or wait all night for the bus. In the end, Gilbert and Emil opted to run home—Gilbert obviously mimicking Emil's super speed—and to meet them outside Berwald's dormitory. But that, of course, still left them with two extra people. Elizabeta had then said to Roderich, 'You can sit on my lap, I don't mind,' who had responded, in such a squeaky voice, if she wanted the cops on their arses and if she was insane. Matthias, too tired and determined to get home quicker, snapped at them that the roof was free if either one of them wanted it.

Eventually, they had managed to squeeze the extras into the back seats. Lukas and Matthias hailed the front seats while Berwald, Ludwig, Roderich and Elizabeta sat together shoulder-to-shoulder in the back. Since Tino was the smallest out of all of them, he had been made to sit on someone's lap—much to his horror because 'What if the police stop us? You'll get into huge trouble, Matthias! We'll be _arrested_ … you'll have a criminal record for unsafe driving!'—and that someone was none other than Berwald.

Matthias silently laughed at their reddened faces the whole drive home.

Once they arrived at the university—thankfully with no interruptions from the police—the momentary sighs of relief that escaped the lips of those from the back formed into groans when they realised they all had to squash into the elevator in order to reach Berwald's floor from the carpark. Elizabeta had muttered something along the lines of, 'Are you fucking kidding me, I can't feel my arms!' when there was a loud _thud_ from behind the group. Matthias turned around in time to see Lukas on the ground, his hand fisted against his forehead and his eyes screwed shut. The car door was still open and Matthias realised that Lukas must have been so weak he couldn't even get out of the car.

'Hey, can you come and close the door?' Matthias whispered to Berwald as he started to walk towards Lukas. He received a nod in response and he didn't hesitate to get down on his knees in front of Lukas, his back facing him. 'Hop on. I'll carry you up.'

'Nah… I'm too heavy for you,' Matthias heard Lukas mutter. 'I'm fine, just need a minute.'

But the glare Matthias sent him over his shoulder made Lukas freeze and slowly make his way onto Matthias' back. Once he was on, Matthias stood up slowly and fixed their position so that Lukas was more comfortable on his back as he heard Berwald shut the car door. He told Berwald that the keys were in his jeans' pocket and he thanked him for his help.

'No trouble.' Berwald put the keys back where they were once he had locked Matthias' car. 'Gotta get him in bed as soon as possible,' he added, gesturing to the body that was clinging onto Matthias' back.

The group made their way towards the elevator, and there was a moment of panic where Matthias almost hit Lukas' head on the archway. 'Mind his head!' Tino had shouted, and at his shout, Lukas merely buried his face into Matthias' neck with a soft groan. Matthias had always known that Lukas became more affectionate and cuddly when he was tired, but Matthias hadn't been on the receiving end of such actions for a very long time. Whatever had made him so drained bemused him, but he would be lying if he had said that he wasn't _loving_ the attention.

Exiting the elevator as soon as it got to the third floor, they were all met with a smug-looking Emil and Gilbert, who were leaning against Berwald's dormitory door.

'You took your time,' was all Emil said to them before his expression turned concerned at the sight of his brother on Matthias' back. 'Is he okay?'

Matthias nodded, but Lukas managed to mumble out, 'You worried for me, little brother?'

His response was an indignant, 'Fuck you!'

Berwald chose then to weave through the group in order to reach his door. Once he dug the keys out of his pocket and opened the door, everyone followed him into his dormitory, Matthias and Lukas being the first ones in. Hearing the door click shut after Matthias lowered Lukas onto the couch, Matthias let loose a huge yawn. He was a lot more tired than he had originally thought. But when his eyes landed on Elizabeta, who sat in one of the armchairs nearby, his mind became alert.

There were too many things that they needed to know. Elizabeta was their one chance of finding out what the hell was going on.

After everyone had found somewhere to sit, including nicking chairs from the kitchen table and, in Gilbert's case, sitting on the floor with his back against the arm of the couch, right by his brother's legs, Berwald came out of the kitchen with a first-aid kit.

'I think we'd better treat ourselves and then we can start asking questions,' he said to them all, although his gaze was fixed solely on Elizabeta.

Thus, the next little bit was spent disinfecting the small wounds they all had, taping up split eyebrows and plastering Band-Aids on scratches. Matthias tended to Lukas since he was too weak to do it himself, but the grateful look he sent Matthias' way made it all the better. Ludwig, being the kind soul he was, helped patch Matthias up; despite being so large in size, his hands were surprisingly gentle, something Matthias was grateful for.

By the time everyone had been treated, the clock was nearing half-past eight. Settling back into their original seats—Lukas choosing to lay his head in Matthias' lap—there was a collective sigh as everyone seemed to realise just how exhausted they were. But there was still work to be done.

'So,' Elizabeta began, crossing one leg over the other. 'What do you want me to tell you? Where do you want me to begin?'

There was a pause. Matthias saw the others in deep thought and he, too, was thinking deeply. There were so many questions, so many paths they could take… He looked down at Lukas' head on his thigh, and discreetly passed a hand through his hair. His condition worried him, but there was nothing he could do in order to show his concern openly, not with everyone in the room. They had to keep their relationship a secret for a little while longer...

A minute or two passed before Berwald broke the silence. 'How about you tell us who Laura is? She must be important if you put yourself in that situation to find her.'

Matthias snapped his head towards him. 'What do you mean?' He looked at Elizabeta. 'Are you saying you put yourself in that situation _deliberately?_ '

Elizabeta sighed. 'I did—that is, _we_ did,' she added, gesturing to Roderich. She ran a hand through her hair. 'It's complicated. Laura… she's my best friend. I've known her for years, since we were teenagers. She's a super, just like us, and we've fought against the shit that is Alfred and his pathetic little cohort since we were… oh, fourteen, fifteen—I can't remember.

'Because of our involvement with him, Alfred has… beef with us, so to speak. It's actually quite funny, to be honest—it was always Laura and I against his _entire_ cohort and yet, somehow, we managed to either come to some kind of draw or win. We never lost against them, strangely. But that's not the key thing here.'

Matthias watched as Elizabeta's expression formed into an angry one. She breathed in deeply and let it out slowly. She glanced at Roderich before she continued. 'I assume you know that Alfred has allied himself with the city's mafias, yes?' At everyone's nods, she resumed with, 'Well, he used one of Carriedo's men to kidnap Laura. Now that he has her, he can use her against me—that way, he can kill two birds with one stone, per se, because he knows for a _fact_ that I'd do anything to save my friend. If he caught me too, then he'd either kill us or beat us to the point where we'd do anything to save ourselves.'

'Jesus.' Tino's exclamation was one that was clearly shared by everyone. There was an expression of shock on all their faces, and Matthias shook his head in alarm. Then something came to mind. This sounded a lot like… could it be?

'Elizabeta?'

'Call me Liz.' She smiled at Matthias. 'What's up?'

All eyes went to him, and Matthias swallowed. 'Just a quick question. Your friend—Laura—who… who was she kidnapped by? And when?'

Elizabeta's brow creased. 'Uh… she was kidnapped around the end of September by someone called the Rogue Assassin.'

Matthias felt his blood run cold. He glanced at Ludwig and saw that his jaw had slackened and that his eyes had gone round. Matthias let out a humourless laugh.

'You know, it's crazy but… Ludwig and I had a friend that was kidnapped by the Rogue Assassin around that same time as well,' he told her. 'Her name's Anne. We've been on the lookout for her ever since. That's how we've gotten involved in all this. Because we've been looking for her… trying to save her… unsuccessfully, obviously, but you get the idea.'

'Anne?' Elizabeta's expression softened. 'Anne Richardson, huh?'

'How do you know that?' Ludwig cried.

'Because we're talking about the same person.' Elizabeta looked from Matthias to Ludwig and back again. 'Anne Richardson _is_ Laura. Laura van Damme, to be exact.' She paused, then her mouth fell open. 'Oh god… _you're_ the Engineering friends.'

'She's told you about us?' asked Ludwig, his voice soft.

'She has, and judging by your reactions, I gather she didn't tell you the truth?'

'The truth? What truth?' Matthias ran his hands over his face. 'How could she? Hell, Ludwig and I only found out about each other a few weeks ago! It's not like we can go around preaching, "Oh hey, guess what? I'm a fucking super! Hooray!" to every person we meet! Of course she didn't tell us!'

'Matt…' Matthias glanced down at Lukas. Lukas reached a hand towards his cheek and patted it softly. 'Calm down.'

Staring at his boyfriend, Matthias let out a deep sigh. Nodding gently, he looked back at Elizabeta. 'Sorry… but no, she didn't tell us anything. So um… do you mind telling us?'

Smiling softly at him, Elizabeta said to him, 'Of course. It's going to be a lot to take in, though… Are you sure you want to know everything?'

Ludwig answered for both of them when he muttered, 'She's our friend. I think that says enough.'

'Very well.' Elizabeta sucked in a breath. 'After our last uh… confrontation with Alfred and company, Laura and I went into hiding. It was a mess, let me tell you. Who knew if Alfred would be after us again? So we thought it best to part ways and to undertake new names. I went with Miranda Scott and Laura went with your Anne Richardson. You have to understand… it was the only way to keep ourselves safe. So then Laura went onto study engineering at your university as she always wanted to do, and I went off to study business at the university on the other side of town. We met once a month, just to catch up and see what was happening. It was the only time I got to see her. She talked about you two _a lot_. Loves you like family, she told me. Like you're her big brothers.'

Glancing at Ludwig quickly, Matthias felt his throat constrict and he choked up a little when he asked Elizabeta, 'She said that?'

'She did. She also said that you slept a lot in class and had so many visible bruises that she thought at first that you were a part of some underground street-fighters' club.'

'I don't sleep in class!' Matthias said hurriedly. He saw Lukas glaring up at him and insisted, 'I don't! She's lying!'

Elizabeta laughed. She turned to Ludwig. 'She told me that you were the one who always looked out for the both of them, giving out notes where needed and making sure they ate when they were supposed to. She really spoke highly of the both of you,' she added, her tone sincere. 'One of the things she confided in me was that she hated keeping things from you, especially all of this. But when you're on the run and in hiding from one of the most powerful superhuman groups out there… one has to make sacrifices.'

Matthias stared at one of the coffee table legs, trying his hardest to take everything in. He was touched that Anne—Laura—thought of him as a brother… but he couldn't quite come to terms with the fact that she, like all of them in that room, was a super. Bloody hell, Matthias was still getting used to the fact that _Ludwig_ was a super! At that point, he wanted nothing more than to see her again, to talk to her, to hear it come out of her own mouth. But he knew that wasn't going to happen anytime soon, so Elizabeta would have to do.

'So…' he began. 'Anne—sorry, Laura… gotta get used to that—she's a super. What are her powers?'

'Easy,' said Elizabeta. 'She's a plant manipulator. Doesn't sound fancy or quite as dangerous as some others, but you don't want to get caught in her vines. You'll be stuck for hours. That's her specialty. She's kinda like Mother Earth in a way, but she can't generate her own plant-life.'

'That… strangely suits her. She always did call plants her children,' Ludwig muttered and Matthias hummed in agreement, remembering all the times Laura had made them stop near the florist to gaze at the flowers there. He then watched as Ludwig straightened his back. 'Shall we team up to find her, Liz? Us three, four if you count Roderich?'

Elizabeta looked at him in surprise, but then her eyes softened. 'It would be nice but… I think it would be best if we didn't draw attention to ourselves by teaming up altogether. Perhaps you and I, Ludwig, or Matthias and myself, but not all three. It would be… too suspicious.'

Matthias thought long and hard, then said to Ludwig, 'You team up with her. You and Liz can work together on one end and then the rest of us will work on the other. We will find her,' he said, his tone firm and determined. 'We will… not matter in what manner we go about it, we will find her and we will bring her home.'

Shifting his gaze to Elizabeta, he was astonished to see her on the verge of tears. Then she nodded and said, 'Sounds like a plan.'

'Hey, hey, don't forget me!' Gilbert groused from the floor, raising his hand. 'Don't know if you know this, but Ludwig and I are a package deal. If he goes, then so do I.'

Elizabeta and Roderich looked at each other, had a silent conversation and then Elizabeta smiled at Gilbert and nodded. He let out a loud cheer and held out his hand for Ludwig to slap it in a high-five. He didn't hesitate to do so.

Matthias grinned. _Perhaps with both teams working together at once, we'll have a better chance of rescuing Anne—Laura!_

'So then…' All heads turned to Emil, as he gestured to Elizabeta. 'What can you tell us about the rest of Alfred's group?' Emil queried, shifting his position on the chair he was sitting on so that his legs were hanging over an arm and one of his elbows was propping him up on the other. 'And what can you tell us about the… trio Matthias, Tino and I fought against?'

Elizabeta crossed her arms, frowning. 'I can tell you everything: their names, their powers, their associations with Alfred. I've known them a long time, after all. As for Ivan, Irina and Natalya…' She puffed her cheeks and shook her head. 'They're a complicated bunch.'

'You're telling me,' Matthias grumbled. 'The guy fucked with my head—almost made me kill someone.'

Elizabeta turned her head sharply towards him. 'What did you say?'

Matthias gazed at a spot on the floor. 'Don't make me say it again.'

'That's not possible.' Everyone looked at Elizabeta, who was frowning at Matthias. 'As complicated and dangerous as Ivan is, he's not the type to make others commit _murder_. Never.' Matthias became very curious when Elizabeta's eyes darkened. 'But… there _is_ someone who is part of the main… shall we say… personnel who is capable of such things. Whether he was the one who screwed with you, I can't say for sure, but Ivan isn't the sort of person who would do that. But who knows? Maybe he's changed since I saw him last. Just… don't be so quick to assume, okay?'

Gaping at her, Matthias' mind went into overdrive. _Jesus, just how many supers are out there that are capable of manipulation?_ He froze as a thought came to mind. _If what Elizabeta says is true… then why was Ivan at the docks tonight?_

'Okay, I'll take your word for it,' he said slowly, 'but that still doesn't explain why he was there tonight. And it doesn't change the fact that he _knows_ something.'

'Of course Ivan knows something,' Elizabeta told him, her tone light. 'It's hard for something to escape him. The only one who can take him by surprise is Alfred.'

'Wait, speaking of,' Tino piped up. 'How does Ivan know Alfred? He didn't exactly hide that he knows him.'

'Oh, that. Ivan was a part of Alfred's group for a long time. But that part of the story is complicated as hell… I'll explain it later.' She paused. 'I guess I better start with who's in the group and stuff, and then I can tell you about the drama that happened.'

Ludwig cleared his throat. 'Go ahead. The more we know the better.'

'In that case… Hm…' Elizabeta tapped her chin, staring at a spot on the floor. 'I suppose I can start from the bottom and work my way towards the top.' She leant forward on her knees. 'So… Alfred's entire cohort is pretty large, but he has a few close confidants that he always takes with him, about three. I'll start with these three, then tell you about Alfred himself, and then move onto Ivan, Irina and Natalya.

'Right, now—Alfred has his own personal messenger, second-in-command and right-hand man, and these men are Yao Wang, Matthew Williams and Kiku Honda. Yao is always the one who sends out Alfred's messages, be it in the form of physical contact or letters, but most of the time it's physical contact, given his power. He's a shape-shifter,' she elaborated, seeing the curious looks on everyone's faces. 'He can turn into any one person or any kind of animal. I admit, Laura and I have gotten in several pickles because of him—bloody bastard.'

'Sounds like a piece of work,' Lukas muttered. He shifted his position so that he was lying on his back, but still his head lay on Matthias' thigh.

Elizabeta snorted. 'To be fair, they're all a piece of work, in their own way. You need to be smart when you're fighting them. Always on edge, you know… and you need to have a plan of some kind. I've told you about Yao, but Matthew, Kiku and Alfred… you need to be especially careful around them.'

There was movement in the room at her words. None of this sounded very good.

'How so?' Emil asked.

'Well.' Elizabeta fiddled with her fingers, her brow creased in thought. 'Take Matthew for instance. He's a ghost, for lack of a better word. He's like air, impossible to grab—or land a punch if you're in a fight. I've yet to find a weak point for him, because he's _very_ good at disappearing, be it through the floor or walls of a room.'

'Shit!' Gilbert let out a low whistle. 'What does that make him—a phaser super or something?'

'Exactly,' Elizabeta groused, making a face. 'Let's say Matthew's extremely good at making you frustrated as hell.'

'So what's his relationship to Alfred?' Everyone turned their head to Roderich, who had been quiet thus far in the conversation. When Elizabeta looked up at him in confusion, he elaborated with, 'Well, you said that Alfred had a messenger, a second-in-command and a right-hand man. Which is he?'

'Oh, right. He's second-in-command. And while we're on the topic of Matthew,' she added, 'be careful not to mix him up with Alfred. They look like… twins, but they're not related in any way at all. So if you're fighting the both of them, Matthew is the one who disappears, and Alfred is the one with lightning coming out of his ears.'

Fighting a smirk, both Matthias and Gilbert said loudly, 'Noted!'

Elizabeta rolled her eyes half-heartedly at them, a grin tugging at the corners of her mouth. But it fell almost immediately, and her serious expression returned tenfold. 'But you know… compared to _him_ , Yao and Matthew are pretty tame.' She looked at them all forlornly. 'This… I wouldn't call him a man, because he's too much of a monster… but he's the one who you need to be the most careful with. His name is Kiku Honda and he,' she whispered as she looked directly at Matthias, 'may be the one who screwed with your head. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not ruling Ivan out _completely_ , but Kiku is just as capable of making people do things against their will.'

Hearing him swallow, Matthias glanced down at Lukas as he shifted. 'How so?'

Matthias saw Elizabeta move around uncomfortably in her seat. 'By possession. He, unlike Ivan, can take over your _entire_ body. Ivan is just good at messing with your head… and your emotions for that matter, but I'll explain that properly in a moment. Kiku is the kind who _will_ make you murder someone if he wants you to. He has no morals, that man. None. He can ruin you from the inside… make you go insane to the point of no return.' She shuddered. 'It's not fun being taken over by him, believe me.'

There was a pause. Then Berwald whispered, 'So he's Alfred's right-hand man, then?'

'Unfortunately.'

Everyone other than Elizabeta and Roderich exchanged looks between one another. They all shared a common thought: _What the hell have we gotten ourselves into?_ Matthias was in shock. These powers… he hadn't heard of anything like them before. Phasing? Possession? He had also never heard of a shape-shifter being from this city at all! They were usually from out the countryside out west towards the coastline, or towards the mountains in the north of the country. This was surreal, not to mention _frightening_. Matthias, at that point, was very scared. Not that he would admit it to anyone.

Ludwig cleared his throat. 'So… that leaves Alfred?'

Nodding, Elizabeta sniffed, leant back in her chair and crossed her arms once more. 'Alfred is Alfred. What can I say? He's very powerful. He's the leader, the main strategist—although Kiku helps him out most of the time—and he's very, _very_ clever. Ironically bit of an idiot at times, but he's sly. His power is… least to say, very scary. He manipulates electricity, and can generate his own. But what makes his power all the more terrifying is that he can control bioelectrical currents in your body. To keep it simple, he can paralyse you. For a moment, for hours, for weeks… for the rest of your life… he can do that.'

'Shit, really?' Gilbert mumbled.

'Yep. He's a little bitch like that,' Elizabeta muttered. She sighed. 'So there you have it. The four most dangerous superhumans you can know about. And then there's those three.'

'Who? Ivan and those women?' Roderich asked politely.

Humming affirmatively, Elizabeta rubbed her forehead. 'They're just as powerful, although Natalya doesn't count because she's not a super. But Ivan and Irina most definitely.'

'Tell us what you know,' Berwald said kindly, and Matthias saw his eyes flick worriedly to Tino. That made him very curious…

'Well, like I mentioned before, Ivan is good at messing with your head, as well as your emotions,' Elizabeta elaborated. 'Something along the lines of emotional manipulation. Basically what he does is project very powerful emotions onto someone—be it anger, happiness, sadness—and it makes them feel that certain emotion. So for example: say he projected anger onto you, you would act in the way you would normally feel when you're angry. If you shout when you're angry, you'll shout. If you silently brood, then you'll silently brood.'

Matthias frowned. 'So he doesn't… you know, get inside your head and force you to do things?'

'No. That's more Kiku's thing. But Ivan is good at _persuasion_. While he can't get into your head and force you to do things, he can certainly encourage you.' She huffed. 'But what Ivan is also good at doing is forcing _his own_ emotions onto others. You need to get him in a hell of state in order for that to happen, and let me tell you, it is _not_ pretty. He's the most dangerous when he's out of control, more so to himself than to others. But it can be very damaging for those who are on the receiving end.'

'What happens?' Lukas asked.

'Well… let me put it this way: if Ivan is angry to the point where he's lost control and he's fighting someone, both of them could very well die.'

A stunned pause settled over them all. The more he heard, the less Matthias liked everything to do with this. He frowned as he processed Elizabeta's words in his head. By the sounds of it all, it was more likely that _Kiku_ was the one who had almost made him kill the Rogue Assassin. But there was still something very shifty about Ivan. _Argh! Why is this so damn complicated?_

'So what about the women?' Roderich asked Elizabeta, effectively breaking the silence. Clearly he was keen to move away from the subject of Ivan for the time being.

'Hm, yes… Well, Irina is a healer. I think that's self-explanatory. In fact, I've spoken to her a few times, and she's a good sort. Same can't be said for Natalya, but then again, she's always been a bit of a weird one. Like I said before, Natalya is human. But she is excellent at martial arts. She learnt it as a means to keep up with the other two.'

'Liz?' Emil raised two fingers in query. 'Question: what is their relationship with each other?'

'Oh.' Elizabeta smiled furtively. 'Needless to say, they're very important to one another. Irina is always there to keep Ivan and Natalya in check, Natalya will kill anyone if they so much as lay a hand on either of them, and Ivan… Ivan's always protected them, no matter what the situation was. It was because of them that he ended up removing himself and them from the danger that we all suffered under Alfred's antics in the first place.'

Matthias made an intrigued sound. 'Are you saying they're related?'

Elizabeta chuckled. 'Yes. They're step-siblings. Irina is the eldest and then Natalya is the youngest. Don't know what their family situation is, but they've known each other practically all their lives.'

Nodding in understanding, Matthias drew in a breath. Then he snapped his head towards Lukas, who had begun shifting around into a better position. Then he heard him mutter sleepily, 'Well… the sisters certainly defeat the stereotypes of the "ugly step-sisters".'

The reaction to his words was instantaneous: Emil, Tino, Gilbert and Elizabeta laughed so hard Matthias was sure they all burst a lung; Ludwig, Roderich and Berwald merely cracked a smile and Matthias, himself, was shaking his head and patting Lukas fondly on the head. He would have laughed as well, but he was too busy trying to keep in the squeal that was busting to come out of his mouth. Lukas was just _too cute!_ Lukas, on the other hand, merely buried his face in Matthias' thigh, highly embarrassed.

Once everyone had calmed down—and one very red-faced Lukas later—Elizabeta wiped away the tears off her face and said, 'Wow—that was the greatest thing I've heard all day!'

'Oh Lukas… You _really_ need some sleep,' was what Emil said to his step-brother. Lukas shot him a glare and snuggled into Matthias.

'So Liz—what exactly is the deal with Ivan?' Tino asked her, getting rid of his own tears, his expression growing more and more serious. 'How does he know Alfred? And do you have any idea why he and Irina and Natalya showed up tonight?'

There was a pregnant pause. Matthias noticed that Elizabeta's smile had fallen and that her expression had grown sombre. She sighed heavily and clasped her hands together in her lap. She seemed uncomfortable—or at least wary—and Matthias was curious as to why she was so. He got his answer soon enough.

'Ivan… Ivan is a bit of a lost soul,' Elizabeta began, her tone quiet and grave. 'He and Alfred had been friends for the past few years. They used to be inseparable—you never saw one without the other. They were a dangerous pair in battle.' Her eyes settled on the carpet. 'They never said it out loud but… Laura and I could tell that they loved each other—romantically that is. One time Laura had trapped Ivan in a corner of some room we were fighting in and Alfred nearly killed her because of it, yelling at her to leave Ivan alone, to fight him instead. If I hadn't stepped in and distracted Alfred before grabbing Laura and running away… god, I don't wanna think about it. Needless to say, it was dead obvious they were together.

'But then, say, around two years ago… I don't know what happened between them, but something big happened—an argument, a fight, who knows?—which caused Ivan to pack his bags and take Irina and Natalya with him. They left Alfred's cohort and boy… you could tell he was absolutely _shattered_ by Ivan's departure.'

'How so?' Gilbert piped up.

Elizabeta gazed at him sadly. Her expression was almost… pitying. 'Well… I don't know if you recall the event but… there was a huge fight about two years ago, at the main parkland and aquatic centre. It was all over the news.'

'Yeah, Eduard reminded us of it at our first, proper meeting,' Emil mumbled. 'What of it?'

'What can I say?' Elizabeta shrugged hopelessly. 'It was a wreck. It was the first time since Laura and I got involved with Alfred and his group that Ivan wasn't there. Not him, or Irina, or Natalya. And Alfred… when we were fighting him, it was like he had lost all his motivation. The only thing that seemed to keep him going was his determination not to lose to us. In the end, the fight lasted the whole afternoon, and it only stopped because Alfred surrendered to us, which was a shock in itself, given that Yao, Matthew and Kiku were just as shocked as Laura and I were.'

'So you're saying that Ivan hasn't been in contact with Alfred since?' Ludwig asked her, eyebrow raised.

She shrugged. 'I don't have the slightest idea, but my best guess would be no. The moment he removed himself from Alfred, I think Ivan intended to keep it that way. But as for why they showed up tonight…' She shook her head. 'I have no clue. They've been in hiding since they left, and I've only made brief contact with them when Irina reached out to me after Laura and I went into hiding ourselves.'

'Well… that's that then, eh?' Gilbert mumbled. 'Is that all you can tell us, or this there more?'

Elizabeta shook her head. 'That's about it, I'm afraid. And good thing too, it's very late,' she said, pointing to the clock hanging on the wall nearby.

 _She's right_ , Matthias thought, reading eleven o'clock. _And someone needs some sleep,_ he mused, glancing down at Lukas.

'In that case, we better wrap things up,' Berwald announced. He stood up and held out his hand towards Elizabeta. 'Thank you. It's been a lot to take in, but at least we know more than we did coming in.'

Grinning hugely, Elizabeta shook his hand and crowed, 'No trouble at all! Besides,' she went on to say, 'the more people we have fighting against Alfred and looking out for Laura, the better! I hope we can all work together in the future!'

Everyone agreed, even Lukas, who was practically snoozing away. They parted ways that evening, Berwald telling Tino that he was going to walk him home on the way out. Ludwig and Gilbert crossed the corridor and were the first to say goodnight. Matthias and Lukas headed towards the stairs going upwards, while the others went downstairs. With a hearty farewell, they all went on the path home.

It was a lot to take in, Berwald had rightly stated that much. But at least they knew most things now… right?

 **.**

Shutting the front door with his foot, Matthias carefully made his way to Lukas' bedroom. Lukas was once again on his back, his arms wrapped loosely around Matthias' neck. Making it to the door, Matthias awkwardly reached towards the handle in a way that kept Lukas from falling off of him, opened it and nudged it wider with his shoe. Once in, Matthias lowered Lukas onto his bed, who fell back onto the mattress with a soft groan when Matthias moved away.

He sighed. 'What the hell happened, Luke?'

Lukas waved a weak hand and rolled onto his stomach. 'Nothing, just fought a little harder than usual. I'm tired.'

'We both know that's not true,' Matthias told him, sitting down on the edge of the bed by his boyfriend's feet. As he took off his shoes before doing the same with his own, Matthias added, 'I know I'm an idiot most of the time, but I _can_ tell when you're lying.'

'I told you, I'm tired,' Lukas muttered into the sheets. 'Exerted myself a bit too hard today, that's all. Honest.'

Matthias knew Lukas was holding something back, but he decided not to argue. Instead, he quickly went to lock their front door, put their shoes in the hallway and grabbed Lukas' pyjamas from his desk chair upon his return.

'Come on. Let's get you to bed.'

'Only if you stay.'

As Lukas moved onto his back, Matthias smiled fondly at the exhausted, hopeful expression he aimed at him, peeking out from under the arm he had thrown over his eyes, and he couldn't help the loud coo he let out when Lukas' bottom lip jutted out.

'Yeah, I'll stay,' Matthias said to him, leaning over and kissing him gently. 'Now move your bum,' he added, throwing Lukas' pyjamas onto his chest.

They got ready for bed in silence, save for an odd kiss here and there because Lukas _was_ incredibly affectionate when he was really tired. When they got under the covers, Matthias just barely resisted the urge to scream in glee when Lukas snuggled up to him, an arm draping over his waist and tucking his head under his chin. Matthias didn't hesitate to bring him closer—if such an act was possible—and the response was a delicate kiss to his throat.

'Night, Matt,' Lukas mumbled, breathing in deeply.

'Goodnight, Luke.'

But only a minute passed before Lukas spoke again.

'Matt?' At Matthias' hum, he whispered, 'I didn't say anything stupid, did I? You know, at Berwald's?'

Smiling into his hair, Matthias managed to say, 'Nothing at all, babe,' before the first soft snores from Lukas filled the bedroom.

 **.**

The night had gotten colder by the time Berwald, Tino, Elizabeta and Roderich left the dormitory building. They made their farewells at the intersection on the main road, Tino and Berwald heading left and Roderich and Elizabeta heading right. Berwald had lent Tino his jacket once again, noticing the shiver that went through him when they had started walking down the road.

'Hey… thanks for this, Ber,' Tino said to him. He wrapped the jacket tighter around his shoulders, much like he had done before the fight. 'You're too kind.'

'It's what a decent person would do,' Berwald told him, smiling gently at him. 'Plus I don't think your parents would appreciate you coming home at this hour alone.'

Tino laughed softly. 'Yeah, that is true… Hopefully I won't have to explain anything to them.'

'If they ask, I'll tell them you were with me.' Berwald sniffed and cleared his throat. 'Which is true, but… we don't have to go into the details per se—'

Berwald spluttered into silence when Tino grabbed his hand and squeezed it softly. He looked down at him and he could feel his face go red when a large smile crawled its way onto Tino's lips.

'I appreciate it, Berwald,' he whispered, grinning, 'thank you.'

Nodding, Berwald turned away, highly embarrassed. He heard Tino chuckle before starting to hum cheerfully beside him. He swung their joined hands to and fro between them, and the very action made Berwald feel giddy inside. _He is just too cute for his own good,_ he thought, looking at Tino's calm expression from the corner of his eye.

His hand felt warm.

They continued on the path to Tino's house in a peaceful silence, and for once not an awkward one. Berwald liked those types of silences, the ones where two people—in particular—were so comfortable with each other that there was no need to initiate conversation _just_ to break the ice. But this silence with _Tino_ was perfect, as he could allow himself to take in the shorter man without a need to voice his thoughts.

It was about ten minutes or so before Tino's mind seemed to catch up with him and he looked down at their united hands. He let go hastily and laughed sheepishly. 'Sorry… didn't realise I was still holding your hand…'

Berwald only smiled and muttered a 'Don't worry about it, I don't mind,' before the quiet set back in, Tino having stopped his humming.

His hand felt cold.

As they turned the next corner, Berwald wanted to break the quiet that had formed between them. For some reason, this silence unsettled him—it was unlike the one they had just had when they were holding hands. Berwald didn't want to be awkward around Tino. How were they supposed to be a couple if they couldn't communicate easily? Or break silences with ease?

 _Berwald. You're not a couple…_ He frowned. _At least, not yet._

Sighing softly, Berwald turned his head to Tino, determined to raise a topic of interest so he could break the hush between them and to hear Tino's beautiful voice. But he was also interested in Tino's opinion on the subject because he, himself, was puzzled over it.

'Tino?' When Tino looked at him expectantly, Berwald swallowed. 'Do you think Matthias and Lukas are going out?'

Tino gazed up at him in mild confusion and Berwald watched as his expression formed into one of deep thought. 'I don't know,' he admitted, shrugging. 'Why do you ask?'

'Just wondering.' Berwald sighed. 'I noticed some things. They seem much closer to each other than usual. You have to admit, Matthias was acting a little over-the-top with Lukas in the warehouse. And overall, they were more… touchy,' he added, recalling the moments where Lukas had snuggled up to Matthias or when he had noticed Matthias running his fingers through Lukas' hair.

'Hm, that is true…' Tino laughed then, much to Berwald's surprise. 'That's really cute, though, if they are going out! But to be fair, I can't see them being with anyone else but each other.' He smiled softly. 'Childhood friends to lovers, huh? How sweet!'

 _You're sweet,_ Berwald thought, and he felt his cheeks bloom red at the thought. _Hopefully I'll be able to say that out loud one day…_

'Yeah…' he said. 'I'm happy for them.'

Tino grabbed his arm and squeezed it for a second. 'You big softie.'

Berwald said nothing, another blush making its way across his face.

They talked about trivial things for the rest of the walk home. Berwald brought up the topic of where Tino wanted to go that Friday for their date, and Tino had immediately told him, 'Surprise me.' That left Berwald in serious thought, but then it was removed from his mind for the time being when Tino asked him how his project was going.

Sooner rather than later, in Berwald's opinion, Tino's house came into view. It was a decently sized house, with a second storey on the left-hand side. While there was no veranda, the roof of the house jutted out from the front door, held by what looked like stacked stones. Tall trees surrounded the house, and the footpath winded from the gate—which Tino creaked open when they reached it—towards the few steps to the front door. It was a beautiful house, and Berwald found himself wishing that he would be able to visit it more in the future—but not just for the house, of course!

Having reached Tino's front door, the pair stood facing each other. Berwald stuck his hands in his pockets and Tino rubbed his arm as he flashed Berwald a shy smile. Berwald found himself, shockingly, seriously thinking of bending down and—

'I would invite you in,' Tino said, interrupting Berwald's thoughts, 'but it's late and we both need sleep… Plus I don't think my parents would appreciate me bringing home a man. They might get the wrong idea.'

Trying to ignore the sting in his heart, Berwald simply nodded. But then he watched as horror spread across Tino's features—clearly realising what he had just said—and he waved his hands at Berwald desperately.

'No, no, I mean—' He groaned. 'That came out wrong. What I meant was that they would think I'm bringing you home to—you know—and I'm not! I think you're more than that, yeah?' He pulled a face and looked down. 'Shut up, Tino, just shut up.'

Berwald couldn't resist the quiet chuckle that passed his lips. He squeezed Tino's shoulder and whispered, 'I understand. Don't worry about it.'

Tino sent him a grateful look. 'My brain and mouth don't connect sometimes… I'm sorry.'

Shaking his head, Berwald told him again that it was okay, there was nothing to worry about. Silence fell between them once more. Feeling suddenly nervous, Berwald licked his drying lips. He swallowed a few times, keeping his gaze fixed solely on Tino.

'So um…' Berwald cursed at himself inwardly for his shyness. 'I'll uh… pick you up on Friday?'

The smile Tino sent his way made Berwald's heart flutter away in his chest. 'Yeah. What time?'

'Seven okay?'

'Seven's great.' Tino coughed slightly. 'You're great.'

Feeling suddenly bold, Berwald swiftly placed a kiss on Tino's cheek. When Tino gaped at him, Berwald muttered a hasty goodnight and started walking towards Tino's gate. He heard Tino repeat the phrase and the soft _click_ of his front door. When he reached the house on the corner of the street, Berwald leant against its brick wall and covered his mouth with his palm. _What the hell was that, Berwald? Did I just do that? I did not just do that. Oh shit, I did._ He buried his face into his hands. _Fuck._

Despite his embarrassment, little did Berwald know that Tino was, at that same moment, on the floor in the hallway, his back against the door, smiling hugely. His cheeks were pink and his fingers grazed the tingling skin.

* * *

 ** _To be continued..._**

* * *

 **A/N: SO THERE YOU GO GUYS. AFTER A SIX MONTH HIATUS, HERE IS THE NEW CHAPTER. I hope you liked it and expect more in the near future! :D Thanks for sticking around so far and THANK YOU FOR ALL THE FOLLOWS, FAVOURITES AND REVIEWS! Keep it guys ; v ; I appreciate every single one of them :)**


	24. AN

NOTE: THIS IS AN UPDATE, NOT A CHAPTER...

Just wanted to bring you guys all up to speed. I want to thank everyone who has left reviews, followed and favourited this story. It means the world to me, it truly does ; v ; Your patience also is to be commended, and I am so grateful for it. Which is why I believe I owe you an explanation for my absence.

Uni has eaten up a lot of my time since this was last updated, as well as family issues and the like (not something I particularly want to discuss), alongside major writer's block regarding this fic. BUT. I am not giving up. No way. It's just taking me a lot longer than I initially planned.

I am determined to finish this in the next year or so (please bear with me! I'm heading into my final year of uni next year and I'm PETRIFIED), so keep an eye out for updates in the future!

I'm gonna delete this in a day or so, but thank you once again for your patience and your love and support for this fic.

Catch you all later and happy holidays! xxxxx


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